A packed house, a live CFCW broadcast and a hometown musician sharing the stage with some of Canada’s country music heavy hitters made for a memorable night in Bonnyville last Friday.

Before the show got underway at the Bonnyville Strathcona Performing Arts Centre, Lakeland Connect caught up with local musician Shane Larmand, who was selected as the featured local performer for the Heartstrings and Honky Tonks concert.

Larmand said the opportunity came together thanks to Clayton Bellamy, who pushed to have a local artist included in the lineup.

“I guess Clayton was bugging Chris saying, ‘Oh, we got to get Shane on here,’” Larmand said during the interview.

The concert featured a lineup including Clayton Bellamy, Chad Brownlee, Dan Davidson and Tracy Millar, with Larmand admitting it felt surreal to be included among the group.

“I feel pretty, like I’m hanging out here with the heavies,” he joked.

Despite the star-studded lineup, Larmand kept his approach simple.

“It’s all just music. It doesn’t matter who’s behind the instrument,” he said.

The local artist is also familiar to many in the community through Lakeland Live performances at the theatre, helping spotlight regional musicians and songwriters.

During the interview, Larmand spoke about how much he enjoys seeing local talent get the chance to perform on the theatre’s stage.

“It’s always fun to see local acts and people, and of course, they’re just so excited to get up there,” he said.

For the Heartstrings and Honky Tonks show, Larmand performed an original song inspired by his daughter.

“Lately I seem to basically pretty much write songs for my daughter these days,” he said. “This one is a little up-tempo country thing.”

The sold-out event was broadcast live on CFCW and helped continue building momentum around live music and local performances in Bonnyville.

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