Multi-Platinum Entertainer, Pilot Dierks Bentley to Connect Industry in VBACE Keynote
/As the business aviation community concludes a year seeking meaningful opportunities for connections, the National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) has announced plans to kick off its inaugural Virtual Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition (VBACE) with critically acclaimed singer/songwriter Dierks Bentley, a nationwide headliner who knows the value of connecting with people the world over.
VBACE, a fully immersive convention experience, will take place Dec. 2-3, 2020.
“No one will want to miss this one-of-a-kind kickoff to VBACE,” said NBAA President and CEO Ed Bolen, noting that Bentley’s unique, “free-and-easy” keynote will have a vibe characteristic of the overall event, which has a single, game-changing aim: bring people together, in an industry that thrives on connection. The keynote session will feature a conversation between Bolen and Bentley, along with audience questions and maybe a song or two.
A certificated pilot, Bentley first spoke about the importance of utilizing business aircraft in his life and career to a packed audience at NBAA-BACE 2015 in Las Vegas, NV. Bentley’s energetic, off-the-cuff presentation, in which he described flying to concerts and then quickly returning home to his family, brought the crowd to its feet.
Bentley continues to be a dominant voice in Country music with over 6.4 billion streams. Reaching a new creative high while “making music designed to challenge” (New York Times), Bentley co-wrote 10 of 13 tracks on THE MOUNTAIN, which earned him the highest debut sales of his career and became his seventh chart-topping album. Bentley has amassed countless nominations from the ACMs, CMAs, Billboard Music Awards and more, while also earning 14 GRAMMY nominations. The multi-Platinum singer/songwriter continues to be “one of Country music’s most adventurous artists” (Billboard) and just recently celebrated his 15-year anniversary as a member of the Grand Ole Opry.
NBAA thanked sponsor, Textron Aviation, for supporting the VBACE kickoff with Bentley, noting the performer has had a storied relationship with the company. “Dierks Bentley has been a friend of the Textron Aviation family for many years,” said Rob Scholl, senior vice president of Sales and Flight Operations. “We are privileged to develop lasting relationships with our customers, and our relationship with Dierks is no exception. Being a pilot himself, his incredible passion for aviation made him the perfect keynote for the first-ever VBACE conference.”
“Clearly, VBACE will uniquely offer the speakers, new products, professional-development content and other features that will bring the industry together, so we can move not just online, but ahead,” said Chris Strong, NBAA senior vice president, conventions and membership. “In a year unlike any other, we want to provide opportunities to connect, so we can work with each other and chart a course for the future. Dierks is the perfect person to get us started on the event’s two days.”