The city of Asheville certified Billy Strings‘ status as a local hero on Saturday by presenting him with the key to the city. Asheville Mayor Esther Manheimer awarded Billy Strings the key during his fourth and final sold-out night at the downtown ExploreAsheville.com Arena.
After Hurricane Helene devastated North Carolina in the fall of 2024, Billy Strings joined Luke Combs, Eric Church, James Taylor, The Avett Brothers, and others at Charlotte’s Bank of America Stadium for Concert for Carolina, raising over $24 million for relief efforts. Then, four months later, Strings brought his band to Asheville for back-to-back sold-out weekend runs (which were already on the books pre-Helene).
The 2025 run brought in $15 million to the local economy, desperately needed after widespread damage and the resulting lack of holiday tourism. The city has since calculated that each Billy Strings show brings $2.5 million in economic impact to the area, with Saturday’s closer marking his 19th sold-out show at the arena since 2021…