Sophia Scott: 40th Annual Salute To The USA (with Grace Potter)

Colorado-bred singer/songwriter & EMPIRE Nashville Recording Artist Sophia Scott will perform at Avon, Colorado's signature Independence Day Event: the 40th Annual Salute to the USA on July 3, 2026, at Harry A. Nottingham Park, joining Grace Potter on the bill for what will be an unforgettable night of music and fireworks (one of Colorado's largest and varied displays)! As one of country music's rising artists, Sophia brings a bold sound and brand of Country that breaks all the rules, bringing both fun-loving grit and soulful sensitivity to her heart-on-sleeve storytelling. With north of 150 million career streams of her original music, Scott has landed on a People Magazine Artists-To-Watch list and was named a Pandora Artist To Watch 2024: Country. The Nashville-based multi-instrumentalist and her extraordinary sound—Country infused with elements of rock, pop, R&B and soul—have earned praise from American Songwriter, E! News, Entertainment Tonight and many more. CMT noted that “Nashville newcomer Sophia Scott proves she has a bright future in the genre." A native of Boulder, Colorado, she took up piano and guitar as a child and soon started composing songs of her own, then further developed her unforgettably candid songwriting voice upon kicking off her music career in Los Angeles. Scott made her full-length debut in October 2023 with the critically acclaimed album "Barstool Confessions"—released the same day as her Grand Ole Opry debut. Scott has also played the famed Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, toured with the Jonas Brothers and shared stages with Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood, Kelsea Ballerini, Luke Combs, and Kane Brown. Scott's new EP "Lifeboat" is a journey through self-discovery, defiance and embracing every facet of who she is, chronicling a mix of wild nights, painful heartbreaks, intimate moments, and lessons that have made this talented artist look inward. Scott is currently in the recording studio working on new music for a forthcoming release (her latest single and music video, "Miss Me Now," was released March 13, 2026). The 40th Annual Salute to the USA – a celebration that's all about family, tradition, community, and pure excitement! Join us at the heart of the action in Harry A. Nottingham Park, where the atmosphere is buzzing with kids’ activities like face painters, balloon sculptors, magicians, and even inflatable fun houses that promise endless thrills as well as artful activations that create connection to arts and culture in our community. From the zingy freshness of squeezed lemonade to the irresistible allure of funnel cakes, and the savory goodness of turkey legs to the smoky perfection of roasted ears of corn – there's something for every taste bud. In addition to our incredible food options, you can stop by the Hahnewald Bar for a refreshing ice-cold beverage. But the real magic happens when Grammy® Award-nominated artists hit the stage, setting the scene for a night of dancing and singing that will resonate through the entire community. And just when you thought it couldn't get any better, brace yourselves for one of the biggest fireworks shows in Colorado, lighting up the night sky over Nottingham Lake! This isn't just an event; it's a celebration of togetherness, joy, and the spirit of community that makes Avon shine. Grammy® Award-nominated singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and rock performer Grace Potter will headline the 40th Annual Salute To The USA. Back in the summer of 2021, Grace took off on a solo cross-country road trip that would soon bring a life-saving reconnection with her most unbridled self. Heading out on Route 66 from her home in Topanga Canyon, the Vermont-born artist spent the coming weeks crashing in roadside motels and taking time each night to deliriously transcribe the song ideas she’d dreamed up behind the wheel, often scrawling those notes onto the backs of postcards and motel notepads. After completing two more trips across the U.S. on her own—and partly navigating her way with the help of hand-drawn maps from self-styled historians of Route 66—Potter flew to Nashville for a series of recording sessions that quickly gave way to her most magnificently unfettered collection of songs to date. Equal parts fearlessly raw memoir and carnivalesque fable, the result is a body of work that goes far beyond the typical album experience to deliver something much more all-enveloping: the original motion picture soundtrack to a profoundly transformative moment in Potter’s life, a fantastically twisted odyssey populated by the hitchhikers and outlaws and other lifelong wanderers who roam through the wonderland of her psyche. The follow-up to "Daylight"—a 2019 release that earned GRAMMY nominations for Best Rock Album, and Best Rock Performance—Mother Road marks the start of a thrilling new era of a career that’s included turning out seven acclaimed albums, sharing the stage with the likes of The Rolling Stones, Robert Plant, and the Allman Brothers Band, and playing nearly every major music festival (in addition to launching her own festival, Burlington’s Grand Point North). Over the course of its 10 larger-than-life tracks, the album fuses elements of soul, blues, country, and timeless rock-and-roll with masterful abandon, thanks to the vibrant musicianship of Potter and her collaborators: legendary keyboardist Benmont Tench, guitarist Nick Bockrath (Cage The Elephant), bassist Tim Deaux (The Whigs, Kings Of Leon), pedal-steel guitarist Dan Kalisher (Fitz And The Tantrums, Noah Cyrus), Potter’s longtime drummer Matt Musty, and her husband Eric Valentine (a multi-instrumentalist who plays everything from African lute to synth bass on Mother Road). Date: Friday, July 3, 2026 Time: 5:00 p.m. - 10:30 p.m. Location: Harry A. Nottingham Park 2026 Music Lineup: Grace Potter & Sophia Scott (Music Begins at 6 pm) For more details: Avon.org/Salute Based in Nashville but raised in Colorado, Sophia Scott has blazed her own bold trail to Country stardom. With a rare gift for raw yet exquisitely detailed storytelling — and a one-of-a-kind sound infused with elements of Southern Rock, Pop, R&B, and Soul — the singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist has amassed over 120 MILLION career streams to date. Growing up in Boulder, she took up piano and guitar as a child and soon started composing songs of her own, then further developed her unforgettably candid songwriting voice upon kicking off her music career in Los Angeles. During her six years in L.A., Scott found early success with singles like 2018’s “She Ain’t Me” and 2019’s “Drink Too Much Wine” (both featured on coveted playlists like Spotify’s New Music Friday), but ultimately relocated to Nashville and immersed herself in sharpening her craft. A breakthrough year for Scott, 2021 brought such triumphs as opening for the Jonas Brothers, landing on an artists-to-watch list from People, and inking her record deal with EMPIRE Nashville. The fast-rising artist maintained that momentum throughout 2022, when she delivered her widely acclaimed debut EP One Of These Days — a six-song project that earned praise from American Songwriter, E! News, Entertainment Tonight, and CMT (who stated that “Nashville newcomer Sophia Scott proves she has a bright future ahead in the genre”) and explored such complex subjects as watching her loved ones struggle with addiction (on the fan-favorite “Side Effects”). Scott also signed a global publishing deal with Warner Chappell Music and Ross Golan’s Unknown Music Publishing in 2022 and celebrated the release of her debut album BARSTOOL CONFESSIONS (EMPIRE) with her bucket list debut on the Grand Ole Opry in 2023. Recently named one of Pandora’s “Artists To Watch” for 2024, this is setting up to be her biggest year yet.