Louisiana Hayride Returns To It’s Roots Tonight

Most fans of country music are familiar with the Grand Ole Opry. An entire genre of music was launched from the stage of an auditorium in downtown Nashville. The show was broadcast on the radio and regular folks who could play and sing became legends.

While the Grand Ole Opry may be the better known of the country music radio shows and career starters there was another place right up the road where fame and fortune took flight on invisible airwaves. That place was the Louisiana Hayride and it was broadcast live from Shreveport's Municipal Auditorium.

Tonight the tradition of the Louisiana Hayride and all of its history will return home to a newly refurbished and remodeled Municipal Auditorium in Shreveport. The concert tonight will feature some of the stars from today's TV show competitions like The Voice and American Idol. While the new crop of singers ushers in a new era for the auditorium,  it will be hard to shake the ghosts from the rafters, especially when you consider some of the famous people who got their start on the Louisiana Hayride.

Attorney General Buddy Caldwell will be on hand tonight to open to the public the new look for this historic building, he is expected to pay tribute to a country boy singer from Tupelo MS, who played his first concert in that historic building.

"Back in the day when Elvis had his first concert right there on that same stage and the same stage that introduced Elvis to the world is the same one that had the phrase coined, 'Elvis has left the building,' well that's the building,"

Those are the words of Sam Voisin, spokesperson for the auditorium. He made those comments to the  Louisiana Radio Network while speaking to the incredible history this now updated venue has to offer.

Tonight's concert will showcase the new but pay special attention to the past. Voisin says those who attend can expect to hear a lot of Elvis music plus selections from Johnny Cash and other great names who made The Louisiana Hayride a legend.