The fall race at Richmond is always a sellout, thanks to the fact that it's the last event in the Race to the Chase.

But something else that makes the event fun is that race sponsor Chevrolet brings in a musical act to entertain fans. This year, the Chevy Rock & Roll 400 featured Daughtry, fronted by lead singer Chris Daughtry. A popular competitor in the 2006 version of American Idol, Daughtry made it to the Idol final four before coming up short in the votes.

What struck me about Daughtry's American Idol performances was how much he seemed to imitate Ed Kowalczyk, lead singer of York's own homegrown band, Live. The shaved head was obvious, but Daughtry's singing style also brought Kowalczyk to mind, even though his voice was nowhere near as powerful. When Daughtry sang Johnny Cash's "I Walk the Line" on Idol in the style popularized by Live, I knew I was on to something. Even Simon Cowell praised the "original" arrangement of the piece, which drew controversy from Live fans, who accused Daughtry of ripping off their band without giving credit where it was due. Daughtry later told Entertainment Weekly that he had mentioned the arrangement by Live in an interview that was cut from the show.

"I did mention in my interview that I'm doing a different version from a band I totally respect," he said. "The lead singer of Live, Ed Kowalczyk, called me to say, 'Man, don't listen to that.' We've been talking a lot since. It's really cool for me, because that's the band

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that inspired me to get into music. Ed Kowalczyk is my favorite singer."
In a smart marketing move for Live, whose heyday in the mid-1990s was before Idol "tweens" were born, the band performed with Daughtry on the 2006 American Idol season finale. In addition to reviving Live's career, it gave Daughtry a ready-made fan club.

I was looking forward to questioning Daughtry at Richmond about his relationship with Live and his upcoming appearance in their hometown at The York Fair. Typically celebrities and musical artists who appear at NASCAR Nextel Cup races go to the media center to meet with the press.

But I was surprised to find that Daughtry was not on the media center schedule in Richmond. Despite more than five hours between a noon sound check and the 5:30 p.m. performance, he said through his tour manager that he had "no time" for either a press conference or a brief interview.

I doubt that Daughtry's a NASCAR fan, especially after the lukewarm reception he got from the Richmond fans. Master of ceremonies and radio show host Riki Rachtman could only do so much to drum up enthusiasm for a guy with trouble hitting the high notes on stage.

Anyway, welcome to York, Daughtry. Break a leg Friday night.

Ellen Siska writes about NASCAR for The York Dis patch. She can be reached at esiska@yorkdis patch.com.