“I started touring Pennsylvania State Prisons in 2011 when I was 19 after a friend who worked at SCI Camp Hill reached out to see if I’d consider performing there,” remarks Ben Gallaher. “I jumped at the opportunity, even though I’d never been to a prison before. After that first solo acoustic performance, it just spread from one state prison to another.”
Gallaher continues, “I titled it the Barbed Tour and each year I love going back to play behind bars. It’s such an unscripted experience. Music is so universal. It doesn’t matter where; whether you are in a bar, in a church, or in a prison, music has a powerful effect.”
“One vivid memory I recall is about a guy who came up to me after I performed a heartbreak song and he was crying,” the 26-year-old entertainer continued. “He said, ‘Man, I’ve been in here 20 years and that song just changed my life.’ The audiences are so attentive. It’s like you can hear a pin drop when I’m playing – they listen to every word. It’s an experience I have grown to appreciate so much, and it fuels my ultimate goal as an artist and songwriter to have a positive impact through my music.”
Ben Gallaher’s 2017 Barbed Tour includes stops at the following Pennsylvania State Correctional Institutions:
Monday, December 11 – Frackville
Tuesday, December 12 – Fayette
Thursday, December 14 – Camp Hill
Friday, December 15 – Graterford
Tuesday, December 19 – Retreat
Wednesday, December 20 – Chester
With Ben Gallaher what you see is what you get. His songs are autobiographical anthems of growing up in South Central Pennsylvania with a passion for ‘90s country, a reverence for the guitar masters, and a self-awareness that connects like super glue with his growing fan base.
Genuine in his songwriting, gifted in his self-taught musicianship, and energetic in his stage performance, Gallaher doesn’t just understand his fans, he is cut from the same cloth. Whether he is performing in a dusty roadhouse or state prison he delivers his truth in songs that reflect the dignity of simple things and a deeply-rooted respect for what matters.
Follow Ben Gallaher on…
Facebook: Facebook.com/BenGallaherMusic/
Twitter: @ben_gallaher
Instagram: @ben_gallaher
Website: www.bengallaher.com