The Margaritaville Casino in Biloxi opens next week and Jimmy Buffett was in Jackson today to meet with the Mississippi Gaming Commission.
[See video below]
The popular singer met a Mississippi Gaming Commission requirement to appear before the panel before the casino’s VIP celebration at 5 p.m. and public grand opening at 8.
“Nothing like good timing!” Buffett told commissioners meeting this morning at their North Street office. “It’s always a pleasure to come home, and a double pleasure to get certified, because we open next week.”
The casino, to employ almost 1,000, will be located on Biloxi’s Back Bay.
Commissioners in March gave the casino their blessing, said Buffett’s business partner of 15 years, John Cohlan, but Buffett was required to make a personal appearance before the board as part of the certification. “Jimmy was on the road a month ago, and he couldn’t do it,” Cohlan explained.
But today, Buffett charmed all those at the meeting without singing the first note.
“I made my first professional dollar in Biloxi back in the 60s,” the Pascagoula native said. “I’m very proud to be coming back here.”
The $62 million project has been in the works since 2009, with the struggling economy playing a role in its slow progression.
But today, the project and the area of Biloxi it will invigorate are blooming. Biloxi’s Fifth Street, which will provide a tropical entryway to the casino, has been rebuilt. Trolleys will bring customers to the casino from a 900-vehicle parking lot.
“It’s touching,” Buffett said of the casino’s employment numbers. “It’s good to be an economic force on the Gulf Coast.”
It saddens him, Buffett said, to drive along U.S. 90 between New Orleans and Biloxi and see bare slabs where before Hurricane Katrina, buildings once stood.
“We certainly will be a catalyst in that area,” Buffett said. “We’re doing what we can.”
Cohlan told commissioners that Buffett “has opened my eyes to that part of the world.
“It’s safe to say that this is the most special thing we’ve ever done, from Jimmy’s perspective.”
The singer said he’s going to be “pretty involved” in his namesake casino, even though he says home is a wide swath “from upstate New York to the French West Indies.
“I’m always in and out of New Orleans,” he said. “And, the Walter Anderson Museum in Ocean Springs is a pet project of mine. It’s a good excuse to come here and be home.”
Buffett said he’ll be there for the opening and promises a big party.
And yes, he will perform.
“I don’t know,” Buffett said when asked what he will sing. “I haven’t written the set list. But, I want a dance floor. It will be uptempo.”
Today Margaritaville unveiled Parrot Head Advanced Sun Care, a totally new product line of advanced sun care for the tropical lifestyle. The Original Margaritaville store in Key West Florida became the first store in the world to display the new product line starting today, the rest of the world will follow over the coming weeks and months.
Margaritaville Parrot Head is more than advanced sun care. It nourishes and moisturizes skin the way that the best skin care products do, as it protects it from the sun.
All Margaritaville Parrot Head products contain a unique and proprietary moisturizing base called Aloe Hydrating Complex™. This moisturizing breakthrough is further infused with vitamins and other natural ingredients like Olive Squalane, Borage, Hemp, Brazil Nut, Avocado, Calendula, Chamomile, Comfrey and Carrot. Together, these ingredients work to enhance skin’s elasticity and moisture retention, protect against oxidative stress, and have anti-aging properties as well.
Of course, since it’s from Margaritaville, Parrot Head is also about having fun. The brand was inspired by the legions of freewheeling, sun-seeking Parrot Heads around the world. Every Parrot Head product is infused with the essence of Margaritaville, and is made to let you escape to the tropics anytime.
Margaritaville Parrot Head will be available in six product lines that are all PABA and Paraben free:
“Floridays” Moisturizing Sunscreen Lotion:
Floridays Moisturizing Sunscreen Lotions are Ultra light moisturizing sunscreens that are perfect for everyday sun protection. Floridays contains Olive Squalane, a light emollient that penetrates quickly and deeply to fight dryness and moisturize skin. Floridays is also available in a lip balm.
“Floridays” Face Ultra Light Moisturizing Sunscreen:
Floridays Face is an ultra light sunscreen made specifically to protect the delicate skin on the face. This Aloe Hydrating Complex 500 formula is enriched with H2O Melon Skin Aging Defense™ that protects skin against extreme climate conditions and UV radiation.
“FINS UP!” Sport Sunscreen Lotion and Spray:
FINS UP! Sport Sunscreen Lotion and Spray are instant dry, high performance moisturizing sunscreens that offer maximum sun protection and moisturization. FINS UP! Is formulated with WetSkin Tech™ technology that enables it to bond to your skin for maximum resistance to moisture.
“Parakeet Kids” Sunscreen Lotion and Spray:
Parakeet Kids Sunscreen Lotion and Spray are specially formulated for kids’ sensitive skin; they’re fragrance-free, hypoallergenic and provide maximum protection and maximum water resistance.
“License to Chill” Cooling Aloe Lotion and Gel:
License to Chill Cooling Aloe Lotion and Gel are fortified with Parrot Head’s most intensive Aloe Hydrating Complex 1500 and H20 Melon Skin Aging Defense to heal, moisturize, soothe and repair skin. License to Chill also makes tans last longer.
“Dedicated To Sunshine” Tanning Oil and Tan Enhancer:
Dedicated To Sunshine Tanning Oil and Tan Enhancer with Aloe Hydrating Complex contain a rich mixture of tropical botanicals including Calendula, Chamomile, Borage and Hemp Oil. Together they improve skin tone, prevent moisture loss, and have anti-aging properties too.
In 2012, Parrot Head products will be available online and at select retail stores in the Caribbean, Florida, and the South East, as well as at Margaritaville destinations across the country. A full scale launch is planned in January of 2013 in the remainder of the US.
The developer of the Margaritaville Hollywood Beach Resort is way behind in financing according to an article in the Orlando Sentinel:
The fate of the long-anticipated Margaritaville Hollywood Beach Resort is in peril because of problems obtaining financing, but the city and the developer say they’re optimistic the money will come through.
Developer Lon Tabatchnik is supposed to have financing in place by Tuesday but has yet to raise the $126 million needed for the 17-story, 349-room Jimmy Buffett-themed resort.
Tabatchnik had hoped to get the money through a program that gives foreign investors residency in the United States if they invest at least $500,000 each in job-creating projects.
But Tabatchnik, city officals say, has received commitments to date from only 26 Chinese investors, which would raise $13 million, far too little to meet Tuesday’s deadline.
To get the project going, he’s now talking to banks for loans and he’s asking the city’s Community Redevelopment Agency to kick in up to $25 million.
“We’re not alarmed by this,” Assistant City Manager Cathy Swanson-Rivenbark said. “We absolutely know he is feverishly working on this.”
Despite “the unforeseen hurdles,” Tabatchnik said he is not discouraged.
“We’re in the process of negotiating and finalizing the terms of our financing arrangements. We’re very close,” he said. “We’ll get them accomplished and we’ll get this project built.”
City officials say Tabatchnik wants to borrow at least $75 million from banks, but hotel analysts say banks are tight with credit for new hotels since the financial crisis in 2008.
“I think it’s going to be awfully tough. Banks are typically looking for at least 35 percent to 40 percent real equity,” said hotel analyst Scott Brush, of Brush & Co. in Miami.
The CRA already committed to lend Tabatchnik $10 million for furnishings at the resort when it is built. Tabatchnik is asking the agency to increase the loan by $15 million and provide it sooner so he can build.
The city is studying the proposal, Swanson-Rivenbark said.
In a press release, Jimmy Buffett discusses the Margaritaville Casino in Biloxi, which opens on May 22nd:
“I am thrilled,” Jimmy answered, when asked about the opening of Margaritaville Biloxi. “Biloxi has been on my songline for a long, long time. I made my professional singing debut here back in the late 60′s, when I used to drive my Ford Falcon ‘down around Biloxi’ from the school in Hattiesburg, to play weekends at Trader Jons. Before that, I spent many a weekend, as a child of the Gulf Coast, with my family at the Sun ‘n Sand. I have been fortunate to do many things in my career, but coming full circle to Biloxi with Margaritaville, surely is one of the highlights. It is not only fun, to be coming home and bringing our brand of fun to the Mississippi Gulf Coast,” Buffett added, “It is also very gratifying to be able to provide nearly 1,000 new jobs for Mississippians these days. I would just like to personally thank everyone who has had a hand in this adventure, so, let’s let the fin begin.”
Margaritaville Biloxi is the Mississippi Gulf Coast’s first casino to be constructed since the Mississippi Legislature approved land-based gaming in 2006 and the first casino to be built in the United States since 2010.
It was announced today that legendary singer Lionel Richie will be the opening act when Jimmy Buffett plays Comerica Park this summer:
Lionel Richie — surprise! — will open for Buffett at the Detroit Tigers’ home, promoters announced Tuesday. Richie’s “Tuskegee,” which features country versions of his biggest hits, topped Billboard’s Top 200 albums chart for two weeks last month and has sold more than 600,000 copies, making it the year’s best-selling country release.
Tickets for Buffett’s show, $39-$179, go on sale at 10 a.m. Saturday via Tickets.com and at the Comerica Park box office. Tickets are also available by phone at (866)-668-4437.
The Buffett show, the “Margaritaville” singer’s first-ever concert in Detroit city limits and his biggest Michigan concert to date, will also feature an all-day beach bash in the Comerica Park parking lot.
Buffett appears on the duet “All Night Long” on Richie’s new album Tuskegee.
Jimmy Buffett performed at the New Orleans Jazz Fest on Thursday night and you can watch the performance tonight at 8 pm Central!
Tune in to the New Orleans JazzFest Webcast on May 6th at 8pm Central to watch Jimmy’s set from Thursday night! Check out other highlights and live streams throughout the weekend, then watch Jimmy, Mac McAnally, Eric Darken and Sonny Landreth end the broadcasts from the Big Easy on Sunday night!
After performing at the New Orleans Jazz Fest on Thursday, Jimmy Buffett made a surprise appearance at his Margaritaville Cafe where Matt Hoggatt was playing a show.
Buffett joined Hoggatt on his “Dear Jimmy Buffett” song where they made up most of the lyrics as they went.
The rumor panned out. Jimmy Buffett will make his annual trek to Detroit this year but instead of playing Pine Knob, he’ll take the Lounging at the Lagoon Tour to Comerica Park.
Detroit, MI
Saturday, July 28th
Comerica Park
Tickets go on sale Saturday, May 12th at 10 am via www.Tickets.com, the Comerica Park box office and charge-by-phone (866-668-4437). Prices will be announced in coming days.
Buffett’s DTE shows have typically sold out within minutes. Capacity will be about 40,000 for the Comerica Park date, said Olympia Entertainment president and CEO Tom Wilson.
Buffett, 65, has played only a handful of stadium shows during a four-decade touring career.
“He’s always been capable of doing a show of this magnitude. It was just a question of him getting comfortable with it,” Wilson said. “He started playing stadiums in the recent past, and part of the reason you start doing that is because there’s this incredible demand.”
A daylong “Buffett’s Beach Party” will be held on the grounds outside Comerica Park, where a lounge, margarita tastings, midway games and other frills will be in place for the legion of partying Parrothead fans.
Jimmy Buffett was back in New Orleans on Thursday night where he played an acoustic show with help from Mac McAnally and Sonny Landreth. The concert included the debut of a new song entitled “Serpentine”:
A new composition called “Serpentine” made its world premiere at Jazz Fest. It celebrated Mardi Gras with an ambling, bluesy arrangement: “Two weeks out of the year, it’s all about sin….count me in.”
The Times Picayune has a great writeup on the show:
Seated center stage, surrounded by an arsenal of stringed instruments, Buffett showed up for work barefoot, in shorts, a purple polo shirt, sunglasses and a baseball cap. At his side was Mac McAnally, a member of the Coral Reefer Band and an acclaimed country songwriter and instrumentalist. Lafayette’s Sonny Landreth, another frequent collaborator, alternated electric and acoustic slide on some songs; a percussionist also helped out.
With the Coral Reefer Band, he generally closes out a Saturday at Jazz Fest. There was far more available real estate at the Acura Stage for the unplugged, weekday Buffett show than last year’s fully amped, weekend show. He reveled in the change in latitude, if not attitude: “It’s great to be playing ‘locals Thursday’!”
Noting that “we’re playing a home game tonight,” he sprinkled his set with references to Werlein’s, Morning Call, Cochon, Frenchmen Street and his pal Sean Payton. “This is where it all started. New Orleans was my Paris before I got to Paris.”
The Margaritaville Casino in Biloxi opens next week and Jimmy Buffett was in Jackson today to meet with the Mississippi Gaming Commission. 
Today Margaritaville unveiled Parrot Head Advanced Sun Care, a totally new product line of advanced sun care for the tropical lifestyle. The Original Margaritaville store in Key West Florida became the first store in the world to display the new product line starting today, the rest of the world will follow over the coming weeks and months.
The developer of the Margaritaville Hollywood Beach Resort is way behind in financing according to an article in the 
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It’s been over a month since we first reported the likely date for the Alpine Valley show and today it’s finally confirmed:
