Dueling Christian Rock Festivals

ORLANDO (CelebrityAccess MediaWire) — Two titans clashed this past weekend in sunny Florida as both Universal Studios Orlando and Disney World staged simultanous Christian music festivals.

Universal's "Rock the Universe" festival featured performances by Casting Crowns, MercyMe, Jars of Clay, Grits, Hawk Nelson, Family Force, John Waller, & Echoing Angels. Saturday's headliner's are Relient K, Jeremy Camp, Toby Mac, Pocket Full of Rocks & Robert Pierre, Skillet and The Afters.

While over at Disney World, the lineup features: Third Day, Chris Tomlin, David Crowder Band, Jaci Velaquez, Brian Littrell, BarlowGirl, Leeland, Jessie Daniels, Sanctus Real & Cosmic Ray's with Saturday boasting Newsboys, Steven Curtis Chapman, Salvador, Smokie Norful, Kutless, Red, Mary Mary, Flyleaf, Mark Schultz & Rachael Hurt.

Disney's festival has been the longest-running of the pair with this year marking their 25th anniversary while Universal's has only been running since 1999.

Brad Ross, the Director of Talent Booking at Disney took a moment to answer a few questions about the festival.

CelebrityAccess: How did the show go, does the competition impact your ticket sales for the event?

Brad Ross: We did a double-sellout. The linup this year was one of the best we've had with standout performances by Third Day and Chris Tomlin among others.

CA: Now that another Christian music festival is going on during the same weekend in your market, how do you differentiate your event?

Ross: This year, we focused on Christian rock while the competition looked for the adult contemporary audience.

CA: How competitive has booking become now that you're not the only festival in town?

Ross: Booking has become highly competitive, but we find that when artists play our event, they tend to want to come back.

– CelebrityAcces Staff Writer