Vertical Horizon will join the trek as special guests
Grammy-nominated, platinum-selling artist, Five For Fighting (aka John Ondrasik) will be back on the road, headlining shows this August with special guest Vertical Horizon. Additional dates are expected to be announced.
Presales start tomorrow (Wed, Mar 26th) ahead of the general sale on Friday, March 28th.
“I’m so excited to go back to the future and hit the road with Vertical Horizon,” says Ondrasik. “One of my early touring experiences was opening for Vertical Horizon and Matt was kind enough to give me my first look at a tour bus. (We were still in the van!). Here we are over 25 years later singing songs, tossing basses, and bringing back memories for music fans of all ages. One could say I’m sixty for a moment…and thankfully this time we have a tour bus!”
Ondrasik will bring along his band, drummer Randy Cooke (Mick Jagger, Ringo Starr, Dave Stewart), bassist John Button (Sheryl Crow, The Who, Shakira), and guitarist Peter Thorn (Chris Cornell, Melissa Etheridge, Don Henley), to play the songs his fans have loved for over two decades along with his recent viral hits.
To date, Five For Fighting, has released six studio albums, including the platinum certified America Town and The Battle for Everything; and the top ten charting Two Lights, along with an EP and live albums. Ondrasik has penned major hits, including the chart-topping “100 Years,” “The Riddle,” “Chances,” “World,” and “Easy Tonight,” which have earned tens of millions of streams and place him as a top 10 Hot Adult Contemporary artist for the 2000s. The reflective “100 Years” has joined “Superman (It’s Not Easy)” as part of the American Songbook and continues to stand the test of time at weddings, birthdays, graduations, memorials, and many a home video. Five For Fighting’s music has also been featured in more than 350 films, television shows, and commercials, including the Oscar-winning The Blind Side, Hawaii Five-O, The Sopranos and the CBS drama, Code Black.
Ondrasik’s passion for supporting humanitarian efforts and freedom has been a longstanding commitment for the artist as well. Recently, he’s been writing songs about key events around the world from a humanistic perspective including “Can One Man Save The World?” which was inspired by the courage of President Vladimir Zelenskyy and the people of Ukraine. He performed the song in Ukraine with the Ukrainian Orchestra amongst the ruins of the Antonov Airport in front of the Ukrainians’ beloved Mriya, the world’s largest cargo plane that Russia destroyed at the outset of the war. Ondrasik wrote “OK (We Are Not Ok)” in response to the October 7th Hamas attacks in Israel, while addressing the cultural aftermath both in America and around the world. On April 13th Ondrasik performed “OK (We Are Not Ok)”and “Superman (It’s Not Easy)” in Tel Aviv hours before Iran’s missile attack on Israel.
Ondrasik is also a longtime supporter of music education. He’s teamed up with Let Music Fill My World again this year, a privately funded nonprofit launched by Tullman Community Ventures. They announced the return of the Music Matters Challenge, a nationwide competition aimed at rekindling the transformative power of music education in schools across the country. Running through the end of May, the Challenge offers a chance for participants to compete for prizes while making a lasting impact through the power of music.
Before the summer rock tour kicks off, Five For Fighting will be playing a series of special string quartet shows beginning April 25th in Lawrence, Kansas. Ondrasik will be bringing top musicians including Tony-Award winning concertmaster and co-orchestrator of Moulin Rouge! The Musical Katie Kresek on violin, Melissa Tong on violin, who toured with Post Malone in 2023, and Broadway’s Chris Cardona on viola and Peter Sachon on cello. The unique nature of the shows allows Ondrasik to go behind the music and tell stories while the format allows for a deeper dive into the catalog, while there is always a surprise or two in store.
Five for Fighting String Quarter Tour Dates:
Apr 25 – Lawrence, KS @ Liberty Hall
Apr 26 – Omaha, NE @ The Admiral
Apr 27 – Wichita, KS @ The Cotillion Ballroom
Apr 29 – St. Louis, MO @ City Winery St. Louis
Apr 30 – McMinnville, TN @ Park Theater
May 2 – Cincinnati, OH @ The Ludlow Garage
May 3 – Pontiac, MI @ The Flagstar Strand Theatre
May 4 – Akron, OH @ Goodyear Theater
May 7 – Nashville, TN @ City Winery Nashville
May 9 – Charlotte, NC @ Neighborhood Theatre
May 13 – Atlanta, GA @ City Winery Atlanta
May 14 – Newberry, SC @ Newberry Opera House
May 17 – Pittsburgh, PA @ City Winery Pittsburgh
May 19 – Annapolis, MD @ Rams Head On Stage
May 20 – Alexandria, VA @ The Birchmere
Five for Fighting With Vertical Horizon Tour Dates:
Aug 13 – Columbus, OH @ TempleLive at the Columbus Athenaeum
Aug 14 – St. Charles, IL @ The Arcada Theatre
Aug 16 – Oklahoma City, OK @ Scissortail Park (Free Show)
Aug 17 – Dallas, TX @ Bomb Factory
Aug 19- Arvada, CO @ Arvada Center Summer Concert Series
Aug 20 – Grand Junction, CO @ Avalon Theatre
Aug 22 – Salt Lake City, UT @ The Union
Aug 23 – Boise, ID @ Knitting Factory Concert House
Aug 24 – Spokane, WA @ Knitting Factory Concert House
