I kicked off my birthday weekend in a big way. I attended my very first country music concert! My cousin and I had 8th row seats to the Locked and ReLoaded Tour featuring Raelynn from The Voice, Kix Brooks (formerly of Brooks & Dunn), Dierks Bentley and Miranda Lambert. I recently got into country music in a big way. I listened to country music that leaned more towards the pop genre like Lady Antebellum, Taylor Swift and The Band Perry. It wasn’t until I heard Luke Bryan that I dove in head first. It was then that my iTunes collection went from a pretty mixed up collection of music to primarily country. As I’ve said before, country singers just want to have a good time, shoot some stuff and drink beer. I can hang with that!
The concert was one of the best I’ve attended! The energy in the arena was all about having a good time and enjoying the evening. We heard Raelynn while we ate and started our beer round. We got our seats in time for Kix Brooks. One of my favorite moments from his set was when one of his band members did a cover of “American Girl” from Tom Petty.
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| Guitar and banjo set up for Kix Brooks with a vintage effect |
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| Kix Brooks fiddler |
I’ve heard Dierks Bentley’s music before on the radio, but I hadn’t considered myself a fan. He really connected with his audience and put on a great show. I’ve, of course, purchased his latest album “Home” since then. His energy was so great that I’d really like to see him again. I also appreciated how he accepted a “Restore the Shore” hat from someone in the crowd and wore it through the rest of his set. While introducing his new single “I Hold On,” he spoke about those who lost their home during Sandy and have to rebuild yet they hold on to their memories of home.
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| Dierks Bentley |
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| One of my favorite photos from the night |
The anticipation for Miranda Lambert was high. I have become such a fan of hers after realizing what a bad ass she is. You’ve got to love a woman who’s microphone stand is a shotgun (I wish I could have gotten a picture of that)! She played a mix of old and new, which I appreciate from artists. Fans just want to go and have a good time singing along to songs they know and love. Even though I felt she didn’t have as much energy or crowd interaction as Dierks Bentley, I still enjoyed her show.
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| This is how close we were sitting! |
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| Miranda and her pretty pink guitar |
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| Miranda Lambert |
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| My favorite Miranda photo from the night |
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| She’s looking right at the camera! |
No concert goes without a little overpriced merchandise, right? It wasn’t that it was overpriced, but that I wanted everything! So I settled on a hat, t-shirt and keychain.
You like what I did there, right?! “Dayum, Baby” is a Florida Georgia Line song.
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