Kelly will perform over two nights in Warrnambool as part of his 24-date tour in 22 locations across the country's east coast.

The troubadour will be joined by Vika and Linda Bull, Bill McDonald, Peter Luscombe, Ash Naylor and Cameron Bruce on July 27 and 28.

"The band and crew and I have really missed each other over the last eighteen months as shows after shows were first postponed then cancelled," he said.

"We put our toe in the water with a one off New Year's Eve performance for TV but now we're really looking forward to stretching out and playing music night after night.

"We want to see the whites of your eyes, you lovers of sound, joy and fury; we want to charge the air around us and change each other and send you home singing into the night."

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Lighthouse Theatre service manager Xavier Dannock said hosting an artist of Kelly's calibre was a massive boost for the venue and the region.

"It's very exciting, we don't often get big names like this to Warrnambool though this year we have been lucky," he said. "Paul Kelly is next level.

"We are lucky to be one of only a few small regional centres hosting the tour. There's Bendigo, Geelong, Ballarat and then there's us which is just fantastic.

"Not only that, but we have two shows which really shows the faith they have in south-west to bring out big numbers for live music."

A recent $250,000 upgrade of the theatre has given it the same style of sound system as the Sydney Opera House which Mr Dannock said helped attract artists such as Kelly.

"The investment in our resources is what's making us a popular destinations for tours," he said. "We need to stand out and compete with other venues across the state and now we are one of the few who are leading the pack.

"At the end of the day we want the community to come out and support Australian live music and by supporting these tours now, more live music will come our way."

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Inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame in 1997, Kelly has 25 studio albums, multiple film soundtracks, and two live albums to his name.

Throughout the pandemic, Kelly released two albums; Forty Days and Please Leave Your Light On with Australian pianist and composer Paul Grabowsky, performed at key television events including 'Music From The Home Front', 'The Sound' and the livestream 'The State of Music'.

Frontier Members can access pre-sale tickets for On the Road Again from May 18, before tickets go on sale to the general public on May 20.

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