Camp Broadcast benefit show brings Nashville artists to Joe's Live

Radio broadcaster Sam Alex is bringing a taste of Nashville country to Rosemont next week.

Alex, a Hoffman Estates High School grad who recently moved back from Tennessee to Buffalo Grove with his family, is hosting the "Acoustic Jam" benefit concert at Joe's Live on Wednesday, June 15. The performance will help raise funds for his Camp Broadcast summer education program.

Four Nashville artists - Abby Anderson, Canaan Smith, Darryl Worley and Ray Fulcher - are flying into town for the night to play a "songwriters in-the-round-style" event where they will take turns sharing favorites tunes, swapping stories and collaborating on each other's songs.

St. Charles singer-songwriter Joey Wilbur will open the show.

"Love Is Blind" stars Nick and Danielle Thompson (hailing from Arlington Heights and Ottawa, Illinois, respectively), who starred in the second season of the Netflix series, are slated to emcee the concert, starting with a preshow meet-and-greet. The Thompsons will follow the all-ages performances with their own spin on Game Night, featuring audience participation activities, trivia and giveaways.

Doors open at 5:30 p.m. for the meet-and-greet, with music from 6-8 p.m. at Joe's Live, 5441 Park Place, Rosemont. Tickets cost $40 for general admission, $60 for reserved seating and $100 for VIP seating in the front row. Find information on the artists and buy tickets at joesliverosemont.com.

Proceeds from the "Acoustic Jam" will help fund medical treatments at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Chicago and scholarships to Camp Broadcast, an intensive training camp for aspiring journalists and broadcasters in high school and college.

Alex, who runs the nationally syndicated "The Sam Alex Show," created the master class in 2020 when summer camps and internship possibilities were canceled because of COVID-19.

"I wouldn't be where I'm at personally or professionally if I didn't have the four internships I had over the years," Alex said. "And being a camper and a counselor for many years, there were so many life lessons learned and experiences I had, so I felt bad."

That summer, Alex, who has been working in broadcast since 2003, gave the first Camp Broadcast students lessons over Zoom as well as the opportunity to virtually interview celebrities and newsmakers. At the end of each of the 10 weeklong session, students walked away with fresh experiences and an interview highlight reel to use for educational and internship applications.

Now in its third year, Camp Broadcast is in-person for the June 13-16 session at the Art Center in Highland Park, which features special guests Marc "Silvy" Silverman of ESPN, Tiffany Goldstein of CMT, Melissa Forman from iHeartRadio and Mike Berman of NBC, among many others.