He was ranked between Beyoncé, the Black Eyed Peas and his pal Taylor Swift on the Billboard charts last year. On Halloween, Adam Young will land somewhere between science class, the principal's office and the school cafeteria at Owatonna High School.
The electronic pop artist known to bedroom-bound teens internationally as Owl City will return Oct. 31 to his alma mater for the first hometown concert of his whirlwind two-year career. A limited number of $30 tickets to the gymnasium performance went on sale Thursday morning through Ticketmaster. More are on sale exclusively at the offices of the Owatonna's People Press, where some OHS students reportedly camped out overnight to be the first in line.
Principal Don Johnson said school faculty welcomed the concert when Owl City's management raised the idea, since it's a fundraiser for the school's music program. Young's mother also works in the Owatonna school district as an elementary school teacher.
"[Adam] heard the music program could use some help, and he saw this as a great way to give back to the community where he was raised," Johnson said.
Young still lives in Owatonna, too. He bought a house there last year with money earned from Owl City's million-selling debut album, "Ocean Eyes," and the No. 1 single "Fireflies." This summer, he spread his wings by issuing a new album under a different moniker, Sky Sailing. He also wrote a new song as the theme to the upcoming Warner Bros. animation flick, "Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole."
Even after touring with the Playboy-tainted John Mayer all summer as Mayer's opening act, Young still has a spotless reputation for being a clean-cut, God-loving performer -- a trait that also made this high school concert an easy sell.
"I'm glad it's not AC/DC instead," Johnson quipped.
Chris Riemenschneider • 612-673-4658
