Written by Jackson Keenan, Editor in Chief
In its inaugural year, the Tanglefoot Festival brought country artists from across Texas to the Bell County area for two days of music and more, held Sept. 13-14.
Some of the major acts included two-time Academy of Country Music award winner Parker McCollum, Lone Star Music Award winner Cody Jinks, Texas Cowboy Hall of Famer Robert Earl Keen, and the Randy Rogers Band, whose singles have earned two-time platinum certifications from the Recording Industry Association of America. Many other acclaimed and niche country artists also took the stage.
For Temple residents, it marked the first time a music festival of this scale took place close to home including for Bell County resident Stephen Hill.
鈥淭his has been awesome. It's so cool to see this in our backyard so many great artists,鈥� Hill said. 鈥淲e own a bar downtown, Belton Highlands Lounge, and my wife works for her dad's radio station, True Grass Roots Network, so we鈥檙e big supporters of local music. It鈥檚 great to see it so close to home.鈥�
Since this was the first time the City of Temple hosted an event of this scale, some residents like Amber Hill did not know what to anticipate.
鈥淚 didn't know what to expect, and of course I think I was a little apprehensive and a little curious how they'd pull it off in year one and really do it well where you're going to bring people back year after year,鈥� Hill said. 鈥淚鈥檝e been pleasantly surprised. It's been flawlessly executed, and I can see it really growing from here.鈥�
The event didn鈥檛 just draw locals it also attracted visitors from across Central Texas who were excited to see a smaller city like Temple step into the live music scene.
鈥淚t's really nice to see this happening here in Temple because I know it's kind of a smaller city,鈥� said Diana Garza, a Fredericksburg resident. 鈥淪o, it's nice to come out and hear live music.鈥�
Others saw the festival as a strategic move to drive tourism and follow in the footsteps of other small-town music success stories, like Stephenville鈥檚 Larry Joe Taylor鈥檚 Texas Music Festival.
鈥淎 town like Temple, with 糖心Vlog growing, they鈥檙e trying to bring in some revenue streams,鈥� said Kaleb Hopson Hutto resident. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e following the steps of towns like College Station with Chilifest, Stephenville with LJT, and I think it鈥檚 boosted tourism.鈥�
Beyond the live music, attendees enjoyed a range of activities, including axe throwing, cornhole, a mechanical bull, tattoos, yard pong and more. Food offerings included various vendors and an unlimited BBQ tasting featuring 16 award-winning barbecue restaurants from around the South.
One of those vendors was Bell County鈥檚 own Rossler Blue Court BBQ, based in Harker Heights and run by husband-and-wife team Steven and Kristen Rossler. For them, the festival was both a chance to share their barbecue and a reunion with fellow pitmasters.
鈥淚t鈥檚 in our backyard, pretty much, being in Harker Heights, so it's something that we wanted to do,鈥� Steven Rossler said. 鈥淲e're friends with a lot of barbecue people, and we always enjoy the moments that we get to have our family reunion with them. Of course, there's never been anything like this here that we're able to show them a little bit of the stuff that we do.鈥�
The festival also featured pitmasters from other states, including Brian Hull, co-owner of Hull and Owens BBQ in Smyrna, Georgia. For Hull, the event was a chance to both demonstrate their skills and experiment with new ideas.
鈥淚t's been really cool. It鈥檚 our first festival like this,鈥� Hull said. 鈥淪o just getting to come out and be able to showcase kind of what we do and have some fun with it doing things we normally wouldn鈥檛 do at the restaurant.鈥�
For the City of Temple, the Tanglefoot Festival was a resounding success. With two days of country music, food and activities, the city had the chance to show off the best it has to offer.
鈥淲e were inspired by how residents, visitors, and local businesses came together to create an unforgettable experience that boosts our local economy and strengthens our sense of community pride,鈥� city of Temple public relations specialist Emilie Palma said.
