The Casino File
One byproduct of Atlantic City’s legal-gambling era has been the never-ending parade of musical acts that have hit local casino stages. Their numbers are legion and include everyone from Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett to James Brown, Aretha Franklin, Bob Dylan, David Bowie, Andrea Bocelli and Luciano Pavarotti. But the one thing the local gaming industry has always shied away from is regional artists who perform their own material.
That all changes beginning Aug. 8 as Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City launches a first-for-Atlantic City concert series dedicated to New Jersey-based artists who perform original music. The once-a-month program, dubbed “Garden State Live,” kicks off with an appearance by Low Cut Connie, the no-frills rock ‘n’ roll outfit fronted by electrifying, Springsteen-adjacent singer-songwriter — and Cherry Hill native — Adam Weiner.
According to Michael Woodside, Hard Rock’s vice president of entertainment, the casino wants to recognize Jersey artists who may fly under the radar of its regular customers, and the public in general.
“There was a moment in time when Bruce Springsteen was playing in a bar in Asbury and no one knew who he was,” Woodside said. “And as an industry, [casinos] haven’t really supported the up-and-coming artists. There’s so much great talent, but we’d never give them a chance to show their true creativity with their original content.”
Woodside continued that each “Garden State Live” presentation will feature multiple acts, all of which will fit in appropriate musical categories.
“Probably the biggest challenge of this whole project was that we had to cluster artists together in genres that are consistent for the night; we don’t want people to show up for a country night and there’s a reggae band or whatever,” he said.
The Hard Rock executive explained that to ensure consistency in the bills, the gaming hall’s partners on the project — the folks who produce the annual North2Shore festival in several Garden State locales including Atlantic City — “actually lumped all the groups together in certain categories. So, we’ve got pop, and we’ve got rock. And we’ve got country and we’ve got blues. They’ll all have dedicated nights.”
Making the concept all the more enticing is that tickets for all the shows — which will be staged in the Sound Waves theater, a facility that can accommodate up to 1,500 people — are just $10, arguably making it Atlantic City’s bargain of the century.
Woodside noted that the Jersey-centricness of “Garden State Live” doesn’t end with the talent roster.
“When people arrive for these shows, we’ll have New Jersey-based beer-and-wine vendors there as well,” he offered. “So, it’ll be like a taste of New Jersey, both on the original content and on the beverages.”
The concert series is planned to continue through June 2026, but only the 2025 shows are currently on sale:
- Aug. 8: Low Cut Connie/Isn’t It Always.
- Sept. 5: Blues night featuring Billy Walton, Twisted Livin’ and Debra Devi.
- Oct. 3: Pop-rock night featuring Destinee, Red and The Grip Weeds.
- Nov. 21: Country night featuring Megan Knight, Holdyn, Barder and Kenny Curcio.
- Dec. 19: Singer-songwriter night featuring Max Davey, Maddie Hogan and Camille.
For tickets, go to ticketmaster.com.
Food for thought (and crawling)
Tropicana Atlantic City is bringing back what is billed as Atlantic City’s largest food crawl.
For the next year, the Ultimate Happy Hour Trail will offer guests 21 and over the opportunity to avail themselves of 14 “happy hours,” each with exclusive offerings. The program takes the standard happy-hour concept to a different level with an interactive element:
At each of the participating outposts inside the Tropicana, visitors can collect stamps to be redeemed for rewards. The more stops made, the better the rewards. The ultimate prize is a free overnight midweek stay which can be earned by spending at least $10 at each of the 14 eateries and bars.
For details including the full list of participating outlets, go to caesars.com/tropicana-ac/things-to-do/nightlife/ultimate-happy-hour-trail.
Chuck Darrow has spent more than 40 years writing about Atlantic City casinos.
