While well-known country artist Mickey Gilley may have top billing at the 37th annual Hank Williams Festival, festivalgoers will also have the opportunity to hear musicians who are just now making their mark in Nashville.

Headlining the festival Friday night will be The LACS and Scott Brantley. Both are Nashville recording artists that are just now gaining top billing.

“People still can’t figure out what to call the music we do,” said Brian “Rooster” King of The LACS. “We just get in there and write about what we want.”

The duo has been together since 2000 and “Outlaw,” which is their fifth album since signing with Average Joe’s Entertainment, is a watershed effort from The LACS that sonically broadens their musical scope and blends together every genre from traditional country and southern rock to rap and spoken word.

But it’s their true-to-life lyrics that paint a series of authentic compositions depicting the life of a pair of rednecks from South Georgia.

“We love writing about stories that we’ve lived,” said King.

Label it however you choose. They call it country.

Born and raised in East Dublin, Ga., a town with a population of just under 3,000 people, Scott

Brantley grew up in the heart of blue collar America in a musically gifted family. That is what helped shape his “country-country” sound.

“I’d say I’m just like any of the folks of East Dublin, and this entire listening audience and fan base for that matter,” he said. “We’re middle class — working class — and my sound, dedication and values mirror that character to the letter — character built in America, a Brantley way of life.”

Brantley is an accomplished artist who has opened for acts such as Luke Bryan, Miranda Lambert, Craig Morgan, Jamey Johnson, Jerrod Niemann, Tracy Lawrence and many others. He was also the front man of an award winning band who was named “Georgia Artist of the Year” and three-time “Georgia Country Band of the Year.”

Both Brantley and the LACS will perform on Friday night.

Appearing along with the LACS and Brantley will be Brad Magness, Mary McDonald, Colon Leatherwood, and others.

Magness and his band has been a mainstay of the Hank Williams Festival for the past 24 years.

“I’ve been playing since I was eight years old,” said Magness. “My big break came in 1975, when I became associated with the Little Nashville Opry in Nashville, Indiana. All the country music singers came through there at one time or the other. Unfortunately, it burned down in 2009.

“It doesn’t matter what you do for a living; digging ditches, or performing at the highest level, what really matters is how you convey yourself to other people. If you are nice to others, it will show. If you’re not nice, they will notice real quick.

“The folks that we’ve got coming to this year’s festival are some of the nicest in the business. These people have been around for years. You can’t be an entertainer for 30 or 40 years and not have something up your sleeve, when it comes to entertaining others.”

Fans can enter the park on Friday at 3 p.m. on Friday. Admission is $20. Barbecue plates will be available at 5 p.m. for $10.

The gates open on Saturday at 8 a.m., and there will be continuous music starting at about 9 a.m. Admission is $30.

The festival will feature a free karaoke session on Thursday beginning at 7 p.m.

The Hank Williams Festival is an outdoor event, sponsored by the Hank Williams Museum. There is no reserved seating. Those who attend are asked to bring lawn chairs. No lounge chairs, coolers, food, drinks or pets can be taken into the park.