Country singer nearly missed concert after his tour bus broke down — until fans came to his rescue

Kerry Justich
·Health and Wellness Staff Writer
Updated
Matt Hinkley (left) came to the rescue when one of his favorite country artists, Randall King (at center), got stuck en route to a concert. (Photo courtesy of Matt Hinkley)
Matt Hinkley (left) came to the rescue when one of his favorite country artists, Randall King (at center), got stuck en route to a concert. (Photo courtesy of Matt Hinkley)

Randall King might be an up-and-coming country artist, but his fan base has already proven to be strong after the singer and his band got stuck on the way to a concert and needed help getting there.

The singer took to his Twitter on Thursday night to ask his followers from Kansas City for help when his tour bus broke down. King and his band members were 70 miles away from the sold-out Hot Country Nights show at KC Live! Block where thousands of fans were anticipating their performance as the opening act. The artist promised entry for whoever came to help.

Luckily, one of King’s fans, Matt Hinkley, who was already planning to attend the concert, was scrolling through his Twitter feed when he saw the message and felt the urge to help out.

“My first reaction was, dang that’s brutal, it’s almost 90 degrees and humid,” Hinkley tells Yahoo Lifestyle. “The second thing that jumped into my head was I should shoot Randall a DM.”

Hinkley was already off from work for the day and didn’t have anything to do until it was time for the concert.

“I couldn’t think of a better way to get ready for the show than helping out or hanging out with a band that makes music that I really enjoy and respect,” he adds.

After getting in touch with King, Hinkley arrived in his truck to rescue the singer and his bandmates, while another man named Tim Allen picked up the crew and the band’s equipment.

Just a few hours after King pled for help, Hinkley tweeted that he was “dropped off safe & sound,” adding “#showgoeson.”

After leaving King’s band at the venue to get ready and going to pick up his girlfriend, Hinkley arrived back at KC Live! Block to a surprise.

“Randall’s merch guy gave me an all-access wrist band,” Hinkley says. “Randall was hounded with people all night but did tell me to text him anytime I wanted to go to a show. I’m sure we will link up again. The whole band was awesome.”

King didn’t immediately respond to Yahoo Lifestyle’s request for comment. However, he shared his appreciation for Hinkley with Kansas City station WDAF.

“That’s the beauty of this country. People are just so friendly, so kind. The dude drove 70 miles this way, 70 miles back,” King told the network. “Thank God we have people like this in this country.”

Now, a friend of Hinkley’s from Tulsa, Okla., is giving King and his bandmates a ride to Friday night’s show since the band’s bus is still having issues.

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