ROME, Ga. — About 20 years ago, Jay Shell's uncle basically told him he had no business thinking for himself. Luckily -- and perhaps typically for a teenager -- the aspiring young musician from Spring Garden didn't listen.

“Son, I work from the neck up,” his uncle told him one day while working on the railroad in the hot, summer sun. “You work from the neck down.”

A few years after receiving that advice, Shell was a college graduate working for the Rome Parks and Recreation Department. He had already progressed from “messing around” with a guitar to play gigs in public with his own band, which in honor of his uncle's sage advice he named “Kneckdown”.

Shell's new job – trimming weeds and cutting grass – wouldn't have seemed very conducive to original thought, either. But one hot, summer day he had a vision, just the same.

“I was at working at Ridge Ferry Park and I saw the big amphitheater,” Shell recalled. “I thought that would be the perfect place to have a huge music concert, an all-day festival, right here in Rome.”

That was in 1998. It took Shell a decade and a lot of hard work, but on June 18 he will stage the fourth annual Rome River Jam. And it was Shell's own musical aspirations that helped form a few of the connections that eventually made the event possible.

“Through my music I formed a relationship with Zac Brown and I used to bring him to the Alley, here in Rome,” Shell said. “That has been a great relationship to have and it was my first experience at promoting, putting on a show.”

When Shell decided to create the Rome River Jam in 2008, he took out a loan from his father-in-law's bank and started making phone calls.

“Corey Smith played the first year, and we had about 2,200 people,” Shell said. “The next year, Jamey Johnson was here and 5,500 showed up. Last year, we had about 7,000 for Sammy Kershaw and the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. This year, with Darius Rucker playing, we're hoping for between 8,500 and 10,000.”

Shell said he has been trying to get Rucker to play the River Fest for years and is thrilled to finally be able to bring him to Rome.

“I've been a huge Hootie and the Blowfish fan for years, and a big Darius Rucker fan,” Shell said. “I met him in Chattanooga the week after our 2010 concert and I just kept after him, sending e-mails to his booking agent and telling him to keep Rome River Jam in the back of his mind.”

The full lineup for the show includes former UAB quarterback Sam Hunt, Shell's band, David Nail, Rhett Atkins, and Rucker.

“Darius is probably the biggest act to ever play in Rome,” Shell said. “A lot of times cities the size of ours get acts that are either on the way up or on the way down, but Darius is one of the hottest acts in country music right now.”

Tickets are $25 in advance and can be purchased at Jefferson's or 333 on Broad. Walk-up tickets the day of the show are $35. Parking is $10. There is a $25 charge for anyone who wishes to park in a separate tailgating lot, which opens at 9 a.m.

The main gates open Saturday at 2:30 p.m. and the show starts at 4 p.m. (all times Eastern). For more information visit www.romeriverjam.com.