The Llano Country Opry will feature the Ambassador of Western Swing Billy Mata on Saturday, March 13, at the Lantex Theater in downtown Llano. The show begins at 2:30 p.m., and admission is $15 per person for general admission and $20 for reserved seating. Tickets are on sale now at www.heartoftexascountry.com or by calling (325) 247-5354.
Billy Mata started his recording career in the 1970's singing Billboard charted, Top 40 Country music. However, in the 1990's, he declared his passion, what he calls "real country music." Beginning with his 1998 (third) album release, Keepin' The Tradition: A Tribute To My Heroes, Billy insisted on recording with his own stage band to properly perform the music he truly prefers: real Bob Wills Western Swing and Traditional Country. "It's from the rich roots of Texas music, inspired by the masters of the style who thrived when Texas music nationally rivaled Nashville music on the radio," Billy says. The result was awards and new radio exposure. He kept his music on the radio with two subsequent CD album releases: Traditionally Yours, Billy Mata in 2004 and Domino Effect in 2006 with Grammy award winner, Floyd Domino.
Billy Mata is a Texas music scene veteran with over a quarter-century of making music with his own Texas Western Swing Hall Of Fame band, The Texas Tradition. Two-time Academy Of Western Artists Western Swing Vocalist of the Year and winner of the Academy's Entertainer Of The Year award, Billy Mata delivers authentic Western Swing and true traditional country music. Mata's career jump started as a featured singer with Tommy Morrell and the Time Warp Top Hands on Larry Scott's syndicated radio show, The Lincoln County Cowboy Symposium Of The Air. That lead to guest appearances with the Texas Playboys featuring Tommy Allsup and Leon Rausch. From there, Billy was invited to perform at the West Texas Western Swing Festival in Snyder, Texas, and following that, at the Lincoln County Cowboy Symposium in Ruidoso, New Mexico, where now he is invited to entertain annually. He has gone on to become the heir apparent to the Bob Wills tradition as the Voice of Western Swing.
Billy Mata & the Texas Tradition has enjoyed regular rotation on SIRIUS/XM's Willies Place and worldwide traditional country radio stations. Mata's CD album releases, "Keepin' The Tradition," "Traditionally Yours, Billy Mata," and "Domino Effect" are a mix of Western Swing and Traditional Country with occasional smooth ballads and pop jazz tunes. "Domino Effect" features Grammy winning piano man Floyd Domino, a founding member of Asleep At The Wheel.
In 2008, "This Is Tommy Duncan, Volume One" (featuring the big band years) was released. The first of an historic Trilogy Tribute to the 'Voice of Western Swing,' it includes guest appearances by historic patriarch/creators of the Western Swing phenomenon. Designed to bring attention back to the Bob Wills vocalist who lived in the shadow of the king, the CD was awarded the 2009 Western Swing Album of the Year by the Academy of Western Artists.
Mata followed that with some more projects including "This Is Tommy Duncan, Volume Two" (featuring the years of Tommy Duncan's own band) which was released in the spring of 2011 continuing the "Trilogy."
"By Request" is a special collection of the most asked for Western Swing and Traditional Country Honky Tonk Dancehall songs at Billy Mata live performances -- recorded in the studio -- By Request!
In January 2018, "This Is Tommy Duncan: The Trilogy" was completed and released. Volume 3 features the early 1960's, when Bob Wills and Tommy Duncan were reunited.
Other entertainers will include Kaye Tolson, Benny Fred Kothmann, Charley Walton, Bucille Snotgrass, Tom Tolson and Bode Barker. Tracy Pitcox will MC the show.