A pair of Cumulus Media stations serving North Texas successfully raised more than $360,000 for a Dallas-Fort Worth area children’s hospital during its fifth annual “Texas Independence Jam,” held March 8 at the famed Billy Bob’s Texas venue.
The sold-out event was presented by Cumulus’s KSCS “New Country 96.3” and KPLX “99.5 The Wolf” in Dallas-Fort Worth and included performances by Megan Moroney, Parker McCollum, Hudson Westbrook, Corey Kent, Gary LeVox, Turnpike Troubadours, Justin Moore, Dylan Scott, Tucker Wetmore, and Ashley Cooke.
Kent stepped in for Pat Green following a vocal injury, but Green is slated to perform at next year’s Independence Jam as former patient and country artist Landon Nolty returned for the fifth straight year to perform the National Anthem.
Proceeds from ticket sales benefit Cook Children’s, a nonprofit providing accessible pediatric care to communities across Texas. Local sponsors also contributed thousands, helping this year’s guitar pull surpass last year’s total by $60,000. Since the event’s inception in 2022, it has raised more than $1.2 million for the nonprofit.
Mike Preston, the longtime programmer who leads KPLX and KSCS, said, “Our Texas Independence Jam ‘26 was one for the books. We had more Texas stars than ever, and you could feel the energy of a sold-out Billy Bob’s Texas everywhere you turned. And to raise over $350,000 in donations to Cook Children’s Medical Center during the show was unbelievable!”
