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Kip Moore talked about his favorite NASCAR drivers and performing at race tracks

Country Music and NASCAR have been synonymous for decades sharing lifestyle and a core fan base. Count hit-making artist Kip Moore among the stock car faithful, even if he came into the fold later in life.

Moore is performing the pre-race concert at Darlington Raceway for Saturday night’s 75th Southern 500 to help promote his album “Solitary Tracks” that come out in February. Before hitting the stage, he stopped by the Jim Hunter Media Center to talk about how he got into NASCAR, performing at tracks and his favorite past and present drivers.

Intimidator, Awesome Bill and Chase

Once Moore, a native of Tipton, GA, started following NASCAR more closely, there were two names that stuck out to him in the early days. One such name was the seven-time NCS champion of Dale Earnhardt, especially at Darlington. The other was another native of Georgia, Bill Elliott.

“When I was a kid growing up in Georgia, I loosely followed the sport,” Moore shared. “Later on, I got to know the driver’s names. Dale Earnhardt, that’s what I think of here (at Darlington). “Actually, I was big fan of Bill Elliott.

“So those two guys, as a kid, I think because “The Intimidator” was who he was, I was rooting for Bill a lot.

“Now, I know his son (Chase) and he’s become a friend and comes to some shows. So, I’ll be pulling for him today. It was Bill and Dale I was following the closest, for sure.”

Days of Thunder Sparked the Interest

Many new fans were first exposed to NASCAR by the 1990 hit movie “Days of Thunder” starring Tom Cruise, Robert Duval and Nicole Kidman. And, you can’t count Moore in that mix of the faithful.

“It started by watching the Daytona 500 early in my career,” said Moore. “As a kid, watching Days of Thunder, of course. I mean, it was like the Daytona 500 was such a distinct memory for me in the movie.

“It wasn’t like I grew up in NASCAR where I was from, but then I got into later in life. Then, to play the Daytona 500 (2017) was pretty special.

NASCAR Fans are Wild

Moore has performed at amphitheaters, indoor arenas and various other venues during his hit-making career. Because of his talent and efforts, he was twice nominated by the Country Music Association for New Artist of the Year in 2013 and 2014.

Last year, he earned the International Artist Achievement Award from the Country Music Association. He shared the best part about playing his music in front of a NASCAR crowd.

“It mirrors a festival,” Moore said. “There’s a more of a frenzied atmosphere at the show. More of like a family gathering, for me. You feel like it’s being taken in a little more internally.

“Yeah, NASCAR fans are pretty wild. So, there’s a different nature that comes with that.”

Hopefully, Moore will stick around after his pre-race show and catch the wild racing action “The Lady in Black” can produce. Tune into USA TV and MRN/Sirius XM NASCAR radio to see how the 16-Playoff Driver field does, or if someone else steals the trophy.

 

Tim Packman Tim Packman is a journalist for Heavy.com covering NASCAR. He grew up around the short tracks of Western New York watching his dad, stepdad and step brother race. His uncle was the head starter at many area tracks and member of the FOAR Score Hall of Fame.

Tim’s passion for racing took him to the announcer’s tower and writing program stories for multiple tracks in the area, namely Lancaster National Speedway. In 2000, he moved to Mooresville, NC to become an award-winning journalist for NASCAR.com. He took a job with Dale Earnhardt, Inc. as the team’s Communications Director and was part of two Daytona 500 wins and two NASCAR Championships.

The announcing experience led to becoming a Pit Reporter and News Director for MRN Radio. A return to the team side at Richard Childress Racing as the Director of Corporate Communications took place, which also included another Championship.

From 2015 to 2018, Tim returned to where his career began in 1994 – Lancaster National Speedway & Dragway – as the Track President. He earned Short Track Promoter of the Year awards in 2016 and 2017.

Upon returning to NC, he joined The Garage Shop as Communications Director and host of it’s Podcast and MAV-TV docuseries “Legacy of Speed” talking about Land Speed Racing at Bonneville, and other places.

Tim has hosted two other Podcasts, namely “Pub Table Racers,” and wrote three books. One was with NASCAR Hall of Famer Bobby Allison titled, “Bobby Allison, a Racer’s Racer” and two Children’s books, “Funny Dan the Race Car Man” and “Petey the Pace Car.”

He also served in the US Navy. More about Tim Packman

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