Meet the grand marshals of the Seminole Hard Rock Winterfest Boat Parade. 

Chris Lucas and Preston Brust know how to throw a party. As the country music duo LOCASH, they’ve spent more than two decades entertaining audiences across the country. This December, they’re bringing that same energy to Fort Lauderdale as grand marshals of the 55th annual Seminole Hard Rock Winterfest Boat Parade. 

“It’s crazy,” says Brust, about being named grand marshal. “It was an instant yes for us. And it’s in Florida in the middle of December. That’s another big yes. Throw some lights on a boat and call us the grand marshals. Let’s go.” 

The duo will lead the festive flotilla on Saturday, December 12, as the annual Fort Lauderdale holiday tradition celebrates its 55th year. This year’s theme, “Party in the U.S.A.,” commemorates America’s 250th anniversary and is expected to attract more than one million viewers. Beginning on the New River in downtown Fort Lauderdale, the illuminated procession travels along the Intracoastal Waterway before heading north toward Pompano Beach, covering approximately 12 miles. 

For Lucas and Brust, who have spent more than two decades making music together, the parade comes during an especially busy season filled with touring, new music, and plenty of holiday cheer. 

And Christmas, it turns out, is something both men take very seriously. 

For Lucas and Brust, Christmas is all about family. Lucas celebrates with his wife, Kaitlyn, and their three children: Caden, 16, Remi, 10, and Violet, 9. Brust shares the holidays with his wife, Kristen, and their children: Love, 10, Legend, 8, and Lion, 3. For both families, the season brings Christmas trees, matching pajamas, and plenty of holiday movies. 

For Lucas, one of his favorite traditions is settling in with the family to catch up on the classics. “The week of Christmas, we’ll put on pajamas, and we’ll just watch every Christmas movie over and over again.” 

His family’s most-watched film is Elf, although Lucas also has a particular fondness for the shenanigans of Clark W. Griswold and family. “I really love Christmas Vacation,” he says, recalling how hard he laughed watching the movie as a child. 

The holiday movie discussion quickly becomes a spirited exchange involving Home Alone, The Christmas Chronicles, and the perennial question of whether Die Hard qualifies as a Christmas movie. 

Brust is happy to include Die Hard among the holiday classics, and the movie has even found its way into LOCASH’s newest Christmas music. One of the duo’s original songs references three films: Elf, Home Alone, and Die Hard. 

“It might be the first time Die Hard is mentioned in a Christmas song,” Brust jokes. 

Their Christmas enthusiasm extends well beyond movie night. Brust says his family’s tree goes up November 1, and he’s already looking forward to the moment when touring ends, and he can settle in for the holidays. “We’re really hard workers. We’re blue-collar tour guys,” he says. “We stay on the road. That’s how we make our money.” 

But after their final December performance, the pace changes considerably. 

“It’s gonna be nice to take that deep breath, light the fireplace, put on matching PJs with the family, and not come out of them for a few weeks.” 

This season, LOCASH is adding its own music to the Christmas soundtrack with My Kinda Christmas, a five-song holiday EP arriving in November. 

The collection features three original songs written by Lucas and Brust — “My Kinda Christmas,” “Over the River,” and “Snow Angel” — along with their interpretations of two holiday classics, “O Holy Night” and “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town.” 

For Lucas, who describes himself as a Christmas fanatic, recording original holiday music presented an unexpected challenge. “I’m a traditional Christmas guy, so I don’t like original Christmas songs,” he admits. Yet the three new compositions managed to win him over. “I love these songs. They sound traditional to me,” he says. 

Brust sees the project as something that could become part of their families’ celebrations for years to come — and may possibly turn into a new holiday classic. “When you think about generations down the road, our kids are going to hear Christmas songs that we perform and that we wrote and we put our whole heart and soul into,” he says. 

The duo’s hands-on approach to the holiday EP reflects how seriously they take their music, even when the subject matter is lighthearted. 

Brust explains that making music doesn’t necessarily end when a song is written or recorded. While mixing the Christmas project, he found himself continuing to make adjustments to arrangements, instruments, and individual sections. “I think the creative process goes all the way until it’s mastered,” he says. 

That attention to detail is also evident in their latest album, Chris & Preston, named for the two men behind LOCASH. Released October 23, the project is their sixth studio album. 

Chris & Preston offers listeners a more personal introduction to Lucas and Brust, whose music has long been associated with upbeat melodies, feel-good messages, and songs that invite audiences to sing along. 

The album revisits the friendship, shared history, and real-life experiences that have shaped their music through the years. It features the new track “Where My Stars Line Up” and their current single, “Talkin Bout.” The duo selected the material they felt best represented them at this point in their careers. Songs such as “Love Always Wins” and “Music Row” reveal a more personal side of the performers. 

For Brust, the goal has always been to create music that connects with listeners, regardless of whether they consider themselves country music fans. “We have a lot of people come to us and say, ‘I’m not a country fan, but man, I’m a LOCASH fan,'” he says. 

He points to songs such as “I Love This Life” and “I Know Somebody” as examples of music that resonates because of its relatable themes and positive messages. 

The duo’s songwriting philosophy is equally straightforward: Write the best song possible, then determine where it belongs. Over the years, Lucas and Brust have written material for other country performers, including some of the industry’s biggest names. But when they create something particularly suited to LOCASH, they generally set it aside for themselves first. 

That doesn’t always mean they’ll be the ones to record it. 

“When Luke [Bryan] calls and says, ‘Hey, man, what are you guys doing with this song? I want to put it on my album,’ well, it’s Luke, so we’re gonna give it to him,” Lucas says. 

Brust adds that the process keeps them challenging themselves creatively. “If this is a song we want to record, can we outwrite it? Can we write a better song in the meantime before we go to the studio?” 

Their songwriting ideas often begin with a title or phrase entered into a phone, sometimes waiting months or longer before becoming a finished composition. 

The duo has also taken greater control of its career through Galaxy Label Group, a move that Lucas says allows them to make their own decisions and accept responsibility for the results. “No one cares about your career more than you,” he says. 

After years of working with major labels, Lucas believes having more control gives the duo a better opportunity to succeed on its own terms. “If it’s in our hands and it fails, we didn’t win that one. It’s okay. Come back and try and win another one.” They’re also interested in helping other artists develop careers, sharing lessons learned from their own experiences in the music business. 

For two musicians who have spent decades writing, recording, and performing together, the work continues. But their enthusiasm for the holidays provides a welcome counterbalance to the demands of life on the road. 

Although neither musician has participated in Winterfest before, Brust already has a connection to Fort Lauderdale’s waterways. During the pandemic, he and his family spent several months in the area with friends who owned a boat. They frequently traveled along the Intracoastal Waterway, and he’s looking forward to returning to the water, this time aboard one of the most celebrated boats in the parade. 

The duo hopes their families will be able to join them, although those arrangements have yet to be finalized. Their wardrobe is equally undecided. 

Brust wonders whether the occasion calls for beachwear, ugly Christmas sweaters, or matching pajamas for the entire family. 

Lucas, meanwhile, has another idea. 

“I have an idea, and I’ll send it to you, Preston, but it’s gonna be a surprise for everybody at the parade.” 

Brust immediately offers his own interpretation. 

“Chris wants us to wear antlers and be reindeer.” 

Whatever they choose, music will be part of the celebration. LOCASH expects to have its songs playing aboard the Grand Marshal boat and is also planning a live performance at the annual Seminole Hard Rock Winterfest Black Tie Ball. Their original holiday song, “My Kinda Christmas,” seems especially appropriate for the occasion. 

And while their December calendar includes touring, radio appearances, and charitable work supporting organizations such as St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Winterfest offers something different: a chance to enjoy the holidays with one million people gathered along Fort Lauderdale’s waterfront. 

For Lucas and Brust, whose careers have been built around bringing people together through music, that sounds like a fitting way to celebrate the season. 

There may be Christmas pajamas. There may be reindeer antlers. There will certainly be a lot of smiles and plenty of music. 

And if a certain Bruce Willis action movie is part of the festivities, don’t be surprised. 

Yippee Kai-Yay, Winterfest!