Category Archives: Live Music

by | November 4, 2015 · 1:00 pm

Chesney still kickin’ it

b151f48f27201928232caa0be8f6d17bJUNE 4TH, 2016!!!!!!!!!! ARLINGTON, TEXAS!!!!!! FINALLY I GET TO GO!

At long last, I will finally have the opportunity to attend a live Kenny Chesney concert. Nash Country Weekly released this past week on Friday that Kenny Chesney will be hosting 11 stadium dates this upcoming summer, and the one stadium I’m most excited about is at AT&T stadium, aka “Jerry World”, in Arlington, which is only about 30 to 45 minutes from my hometown.

49811-thumb-266x266The Spread the Love summer 2016 tour is starting out on April 23 in Auburn, Alabama at Jordan Hare stadium followed by a performance at Chase Field in Phoenix on May 7th before finally coming to Arlington. The tour follows along the lines  with the same mantra as previous albums of his such as “No Shoes, No Shirt, No problem” and  “The Big Revival Tour”, of “a passion of living and loving music.”

The tour will also consist of other popular country artists which will only draw bigger crowds to his performances (which is pretty unbelievable since his crowds have been record setting as of late.) The other featured artists are none other than Miranda Lambert, Sam Hunt, and Old Dominion. These artists will attract more viewers making the concerts even more popular to attend. Chesney has been breaking records lately like I mentioned earlier, such as “The Big Revival Tour” where Nash Country Weekly reported that he sold more than 1.3 million tickets.

kenny-chesney-stadium-concerts-2016-tourI’m so excited to finally be able to attend a Kenny Chesney concert. I have never been able to attend a concert of his because either I was out of town when he came anywhere close to where I lived, had another commitment, he didn’t tour anywhere closed to Dallas, or I was too young to fully appreciate country music. If this was freshman year of high school I would not be anywhere near as excited as I was when I found out about this tour on this past Friday.

I remember growing up as a kid sitting in my dads truck listening to Kenny’s album “No Shoes, No Shirt, No Problem” and liking it but not truly listening to it. It was the first country album I listened to because of my dad which is weird since he told me he used to not like country music. He told me he didn’t start listening to it until he moved down here to Texas from New York and after actually listening to it, the stereotype that he thought it was completely changed.

220px-NoShoesNoShirtNoProblems“No Shoes, No Shirt, No problem” will always be my favorite country album not only because it was good music, but because I will always think of how my dad and I became closer listening to it in the summers over and over again.

1 Comment

Filed under Blog Post 3, Live Music, Texas

by | · 7:00 am

Beloved Queen of Country Pop Bids Us Adieu: Shania Twain’s Farewell Tour

At 50 years old, Shania Twain has decided to put an end to her touring days, but there was no way she wasn’t going out with a bang. On October 27, Twain serenaded audiences one last time, as she performed her last concert of her career in her homeland of Canada.

In March of 2015, Twain announced her final journey of performances that would consist of 48 cities and be called “Rock This Country Tour”. Touring for the first time in over 10 years, the superstar traveled through both Canada and the U.S., dazzling fans with their favorite hits from various years and records. Her setlist included hits such as, “Come On Over,” “You’re Still The One,” and “Any Man Of Mine,” to name a few.

Though the touring has come to an end, Twain deserves major props for all that she has accomplished in country music through her impressive voice and outstanding songwriting abilities. She has made major strides for women in the industry, receiving five Grammy Awards, 27 BMI Songwriter Awards, induction into the Canada Music Hall of Fame, and even secured a headlining position for her show, “Still The One,” at Las Vegas’s Caesar’s Palace for two years. Her sassy and energetic persona is exuded through her fun, upbeat songs, as well as her midriff bearing appearance that she became well known for. She has also sold over 75 million albums worldwide.

The touring may have come to a halt, but Twain will continue to bring happiness to her fans as she plans to release a fifth album while she is still 50 years old. She may be done traveling but this is not the end of her career.

“It’s still me, it’s still my voice. The songwriting will be recognizable, but it’s much more introspective and it’s very autobiographical,” Twain said about her upcoming album. Fans are beyond excited to see what Twain’s got in store for her loyal followers that have kept her old songs in their repertoire for years, despite the lack of new releases from her. It will be interesting to see an older, more mature version of the pop country diva, as she is now in her 50’s, and has gone through much more heartbreak andTh hardship of life, through her brutal divorce involving her best friend stealing her man, as well as issues with her voice due to various illnesses.

Being a Shania Twain fan since I was a little girl, I am saddened to realized that one of my most valued role models is at the point in her career where she is done with touring, but am overjoyed to hear that we will still get to hear new music from her, and fall in love with the fierce and fun artist all over again, through her meaningful, and easy to adore songs.

Twain has meant so much to so many people over the years, whether it’s due to a memory of dancing to her hit, “You’re Still The One” at their wedding like my own parents, screaming “Man, I Feel Like A Woman” at every karaoke party, or blasting “That Don’t Impress Me Much,” in the car with your girlfriends. We can’t wait to see Twain come back better and stronger than ever.

3 Comments

Filed under Blog Post 4, Country Pop, Live Music

by | October 28, 2015 · 7:00 am

Chris Stapleton: A Night To Remember

I was driving ten miles an hour below the speed limit on the way to New Braunfels to see Chris Stapleton as the rain pounded the car windshield. Halfway there, I got an email saying the concert was still on but if you couldn’t make it, you would be reimbursed. The event was going to be outside at the River Road Ice House but instead the sound crew had to work mercilessly to move everything inside to give Stapleton and his fans the show they deserved.

Still a naive honky-tonk-goer, I rounded up my buddies to get to the Ice House at 6:00 immediately when the doors opened because why not show up early to get good spots to see Chris Stapleton?

I’ll tell you why.

When you buy a ticket, make sure you look at the number of opening bands. There were four. That’s four separate hour-long sets that you have to sit through before the main act goes on. For a brief moment, we questioned our commitment to guarding our spot with a perfect view; however, once the first band started playing, we knew the five hours of waiting for Chris Stapleton wouldn’t be too bad. The highlight of the openers was when Jason Eady and Adam Hood joined to form the Southern Brothers band. By the end of their set, the house was packed. People were shoulder to shoulder and the crowd was so massive that up people were watching from the outdoor patio in the rain.

Okay… Finally it was 10:00 and they began readying the stage for Chris Stapleton. We stood in the same spot for 4 hours. We were hot. Our legs were tired. And our heels ached from standing in our uncomfortable boots. It took another hour of setup and although our patience wavered, our excitement for Chris Stapleton didn’t. Did I mention that I was standing next to Jordan Shipley who also waited like us?

Almost exactly when the clock on my iPhone hit 11:00, a burly figure with a majestic beard and a perfectly weathered cowboy hat appeared to the side of the stage. You could tell he was an introvert as he kept his eyes steady on his feet as he walked onto the stage. His wife and background singer, Morgan Stapleton, strutted onto the stage after him, carrying a glass of red wine. The drummer and bass player followed. It was clear that Stapleton wasn’t much of an entertainer. He was going to let his music do the talking.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OcNofq_Cihw

Stapleton kicked off the show with his attitude-filled “Nobody to Blame.” Immediately you could feel the chemistry between Chris and his wife as they held eye contact for half of the song. Next, he played his title track, “Traveller.” At this point in the show, you could tell that Chris and Morgan were shocked at the crowd response. They were wide-eyed a giggly. It was like it was the first time every single person in the audience knew every word to each song. Then came the song I was waiting for, “Fire Away.” The world stood still as Mr. and Mrs. Stapleton had me in the palms of their hands. I could’ve left after those three songs and the five-hour wait would have still been worth it.

By the end of the night, it was clear that all the critical acclaim Chris Stapleton has received this past year was truly deserved. I feel incredibly sorry for the people who decided not to fight the rain and come to the concert because they missed out on one of the most intimate concerts they’d ever see.

Screen Shot 2015-10-25 at 3.59.19 PM

3 Comments

Filed under Blog Post 3, Live Music

by | October 16, 2015 · 7:00 am

Charlie Worsham: Country Music’s Most Underrated Man

They say that timing and luck is the key to succeeding in the music business. Some of most talented artists go undiscovered while the money and the power of record labels can’t even guarantee an artist a successful debut. This is a concept that Warner Music recording artist, Charlie Worsham, knows all to well.

In and around the Nashville scene, Charlie Worsham is a common name. He released his debut album, Rubberband, in 2013 but before that, he was in a popular unsigned Nashville band named KingBilly. Courtney Allen, a new member representative at the Nashville Songwriter’s Association International, once told me about when she used to watch KingBilly at Whiskey Row, a local music row bar. Worsham wasn’t the singer, or even the lead guitar player but she said everyone could tell his was a star. He played various instruments from rhythm and lead guitar, background harmonies, mandolin, banjo, piano, etc… He first got his start in country music when he played the Grand Ole Opry at twelve years old as a banjo player. He then built on his incredible musical talents by studying at the famous Berklee College of Music in Boston. After KingBilly broke up in 2012, Worsham decided to pursue a solo career. He has since opened for the likes of Taylor Swift, Miranda Lambert, Sam Hunt, Kip Moore and Wade Bowen. He has even sold out the Grand Ole Opry multiple times. His debut album featured a song called “Tools of the Trade ” that included Nashville legends Vince Gill and Marty Stuart. The fact that these two icons agreed to be on his album just vindicated the fact that Worsham is special.

I remember first hearing Worsham’s debut single, “Could It Be,” on the radio and absolutely loving it. It was a brilliantly crafted song that captured the feeling of best friends turning into lovers. Although it peaked at twenty-eight on the US Country Chart, that doesn’t fully represent how good the song actually is! At the time, Worsham was Country Aircheck’s most-added male artist in a debut week, a record that Sam Hunt went on to break. This proves that even radio programmers across the country had faith in Worsham and his music. Perhaps it was just bad timing. Things got worse for Worsham after his second single, “Want Me Too,” only reached number forty-six on the Country Chart. He hasn’t had another single since.

Worsham is the kind of artist that every musician strives to be. He has lead guitar skills that can hang with Keith Urban, he has a live show that can match any professional touring act, he can produce like any well-known producer in Nashville, and to top it all off, he is a prolific songwriter as seen in his appearances in Bob DiPiero’s CMA Songwriters Series. In an age of country music that is tarnished with ear candy and non meaningful lyrics, Charlie Worsham should be a bigger symbol of hope for music lovers. All we can hope for is that country radio gives this underdog more chances to show the world what he’s capable of.

Other must-listen-to songs include:
“Love Don’t Die Easy”

“Young to See”

“Trouble Is”

“How I Learned to Pray”

“Break What’s Broken”

3 Comments

Filed under Blog Post 2, Live Music, Uncategorized

by | October 12, 2015 · 12:31 pm

Country Music at ACL

After these past two weekends, I’ve heard the same question in almost every conversation, whether I was involved in the conversation or not.

“Did you see who performed at ACL this year?”

acl_music_festIf you are from Austin or anywhere close to it, you almost undoubtedly know what people are referring to when referring to “ACL”. It stands for Austin City Limits music festival and is one of the biggest events held in Austin all year. Before I started attending the University of Texas here in Austin, I never really knew much about it since I am from Fort Worth. Little did I know, how much fun it was and how big of an event it was for all music industries and artists.

This year I attended ACL for my first time and even though the price for a weekend wristband is ridiculous, it was well worth the price, even with the crowds and warm weather. I was very surprised at the variety of music genres present at the festival. What I didn’t realize was that country artists were just as popular as the headliners were this year. The big names I saw on the list were Drake, The Weeknd, and Foo Fighters and while the crowds were massive for them, the crowds were big for everyone.

Some of the country artists who performed this year were Dwight Yoakem and Sturgill Simpson. Compared to previous years this years artists aren’t as popular compared to some of the artists who have performed at ACL like George Strait, Reba McEntire, and Waylon Jennings. (Not that I was at any of these performances, since they were all before the year 2000.) I had heard of these two artists before but I didn’t know the name of their songs but still enjoyed them a lot!

80Sturgill Simpson was very entertaining and the crowd for him was just as big as many other artists at the show. As some bloggers and writers online noted, not many people were two-stepping to the music but it still turned out to be a popular show.

He showed his outlaw-ish charm and while his music doesn’t deal with topics rated for PG audiences, I did see some younger audience members in attendance. I didn’t realize that all ages came to ACL, especially for artists who didn’t exactly sing about sunshine and rainbows.

While Simpson and Yoakam’s performance might not be considered in the category of “Best Country Artist Performances at ACL History”, they were both good in my opinion. Some of the performances that would fall under that category would be:

  • Willie Nelson 1974
  • Garth Brooks 1990
  • Hank Williams Jr. 1980
  • George Strait 1982
  • Waylon Jennings 1985
  • Merle Haggard 1978

These are a few that some people have put in their top 10 under that category and watching some of the performances online, I would have to say they were very good.

My first ACL experience was great including artists such as Drake, Echosmith, Twenty One Pilots, The Weeknd, Disclosure, Dwight Yoakam, Sturgill Simpson, and many more! I highly recommend attending the event next year if you haven’t ever attended it before!

6 Comments

Filed under Austin, Blog Post 2, Concert, Live Music