HARDY to Serve as Ally 400 Grand Marshal - Speedway Digest

Award-winning artist HARDY will serve as grand marshal for the Ally 400 NASCAR Cup Series race June 30 at Nashville Superspeedway.

The five-time ACM award winner and two-time CMA award winner is set to give NASCAR’s Cup Series drivers the command to start their engines before the 2:30 p.m. CT race in front of a live national audience on NBC.

“HARDY’s presence at the Ally 400 as our grand marshal perfectly embodies the dynamic energy and diverse talent that Music City is known for,” said Matt Greci, general manager of Nashville Superspeedway. “We are honored to have such an acclaimed artist, who has made significant contributions to country and rock music, join us for this exciting event. His command to start engines will undoubtedly set the stage for an unforgettable race day.”

Big Loud Records/Big Loud Rock heavy hitter HARDY — crowned “Nashville’s nü-metal king” by the Los Angeles Times — is set to release his first ever full album embrace of his rock sound with Quit!!, out July 12. Singles “ROCKSTAR” and “SIX FEET UNDER (Caleigh’s Song)” are currently climbing rock and country radio lists, respectively.

HARDY soared to new heights in 2023 with the release of his critically acclaimed half-country, half-rock sophomore album the mockingbird & THE CROW, adding to 4.6 billion career streams. The 17-track effort debuted top five all-genre on the Billboard 200 Albums chart and topped seven additional Billboard charts in its first week, including Top Country Albums, Top Rock Albums and Top Album Sales.

The pride of Philadelphia, Mississippi, has earned his reputation as “a promising purveyor of keeping the spirit of classic heavy Southern rock alive” (American Songwriter), “capable of writing the big hits for radio, obstinate enough to do something completely unexpected, and savvy enough to find the throughline for it all” (Rolling Stone).

HARDY has written 15 No. 1 singles, including his own double platinum chart topper “ONE BEER” featuring Lauren Alaina and Devin Dawson, the platinum Dierks Bentley and BRELAND collaboration “Beers on Me,” game-changing 2X platinum duet “Wait in the Truck” featuring Lainey Wilson and first-ever rock radio No. 1 “JACK.”

He has also won three CMA Triple Play awards, was named the 2022 BMI Country Songwriter of the Year and is a three-time AIMP Songwriter of the Year. He’s toured with Thomas Rhett, Morgan Wallen, Florida Georgia Line, Jason Aldean, Cole Swindell and more.

Previous Ally 400 grand marshals include Old Dominion (2023), Kane Brown (2022) and Luke Combs (2021).

NSS PR