BIG AND RICH SETLIST
CHRIS LANE SETLIST (opening music- Bright Lights – The Weeknd cover)
RUNAWAY JUNE SETLIST
DRAKE WHITE SETLIST
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Country Stampede at the Heartland is an outdoor music festival featuring country music stars, camping, and more in Topeka, Kansas at Heartland Motorsports Park, held annually since 1996. Due to flooding concerns, the event moved from Manhattan, KS to its current location in 2019.
Our coverage of Thursday can be found here:
Our coverage of Friday can be found here:
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The festival’s final day began under the threat of storms, moved back to extreme sunny heat, then returned to very brief rain, before the night would end. Musically, things were a bit diverse as well, going from more traditional country to full-on rock/rap.
Alabama native and singer-songwriter Drake White opened the afternoon with an hour-long set on the second stage, in support of March full-length The Optimystic , in part inspired by not only the collective health lockdown, but the stroke he suffered on stage a year prior. He and band The Big Fire played originals as well as working in a few covers, including an appropriate one from Pearl Jam.
Trio Runaway June has just completed recording new music and this stop gave the opportunity to hear some of the new songs, including two played live for the first time ever. A girl-centric cover medley got the females dancing, new vocalist/guitarist Stevie Woodward showed off her skills on the harmonica as well, and their version of a Charlie Daniels Band classic, found fiddle-playing (and Opry Live host) Natalie Stovall defying gravity as she arched back playing in hyper speed.
North Carolina’s Chris Lane was the first act on the main stage and engaged the audience more directly than anyone over the weekend, stopping his set to pit the left side vs. right side in terms of crowd noise, played two long medleys of familiar sing-along hits, and even jumped off the runway to race into the crowd for high-fives and hugs. Lane’s band includes his twin brother Cory on drums, who both sang on their hit, “Small Town on It”.
As usual, Big and Rich featuring Cowboy Troy brought the party along with them, on their Peace, Love, & Happy Tour, drawing from over two decades of hits, as well as working in some familiar covers. We last caught them in an intimate acoustic promo performance in 2015 at a downtown Minneapolis club.
A tradition at all their shows, the band brought up several military veterans on stage to have a drink and toast from their makeshift bar, with Runaway June members pouring the shots, and the band had good fun, goading their Italian guitarist into playing a few classic rock riffs.
The always controversial Kid Rock would close the festival, with a hardworking, mostly music-does-the-talking ninety-minute set that both brought the rain, and then swiftly chased it away. The new album is his twelfth studio release, Bad Reputation on his own Top Dog Records and the set was a no-holds barred in-your-face rock/rap/country extravaganza.
As with most shows, we saw the musical dexterity of aka Bob Ritchie, as he played sax, blues guitar, drums, and also did some turntable scratching.
For the ballad hit, “Picture”, band member and The Voice alumnus Kat Perkins (who we’re familiar with from our Twin Cities base) helped sing it as a duet, and we were surprised to connect how much his 1998 hit, “Cowboy” sounds so similar to many contemporary Country songs.
The encore began with a taped intro from our 45th President, which then segued into his lyrically incendiary “We the People” and the show ended with “Bawitdaba”, a twenty-five-year-old classic that still packs a massive sonic punch.
Note that Professional Photography was Not Allowed by Kid Rock’s management. (His name was not allowed to be mentioned on-stage in the intro either, so go figure...)
Country Stampede is set to return in July 2023, with scheduled headliners: Thursday- Hardy Friday- Lee Brice Saturday: Cory Johnson.
KID ROCK TOUR DATES
JULY 22 NORTH DAKOTA STATE FAIR Minot, ND
JULY 27 CHEYENNE FRONTIER DAYS RODEO Cheyenne, WY
AUG 02 MISSISSIPPI VALLEY FAIR Davenport, IA
AUG 05 BLOSSOM MUSIC CENTER Cuyahoga Falls, OH
AUG 06 THE PAVILION AT STAR LAKE Burgettstown, PA
AUG 12 RUOFF MUSIC CENTER Nobelsville, IN
AUG 17 RIVERBEND MUSIC CENTER Cincinnati, OH
AUG 19 HOLLYWOOD CASINO AMPHITHEATRE Tinley Park, IL
AUG 20 HOLLYWOOD CASINO AMPHITHEATRE Maryland Heights, MO
AUG 24 XFINITY CENTER Mansfield, MA
AUG 26 JIFFY LUBE LIVE Bristow, VA
AUG 27 PNC BANK ARTS CENTER Holmdel, NJ
SEPT 3 SOARING EAGLE CASINO & RESORT Mount Pleasant, MI
SEPT 4 SOARING EAGLE RESORT & CASINO Mount Pleasant, MI
SEPT 16 PINE KNOB MUSIC THEATRE Clarkston, MI
SEPT 17 PINE KNOB MUSIC THEATRE Clarkston, MI
SEPT 30 TOYOTA AMPHITHEATRE Wheatland, CA
OCT 1 GLEN HELEN AMPHITHEATER San Bernardino, CA
OCT 7 NUGGET EVENT CENTER Reno-Sparks, NV
OCT 8 LAUGHLIN EVENT CENTER Laughlin, NV
BIG AND RICH TOUR DATES
23 Jul West Union, IA Fayette County Fair
04 Aug Deadwood, SD Outlaw Square
05 Aug Grandstand Rifle, CO Garfield County Fair
06 Aug Woodstock, IL McHenry County Fair
11 Aug West Fargo, ND Lights Amphitheater
12 Aug Hinckley, MN Hinckley Amphitheater
19 Aug Lynden, WA Northwest Washington Fair
20 Aug Longview, WA Cowlitz County Fairgrounds
30 Aug Syracuse, NY Chevy Court Concerts
02 Sep Reno, NV Atlantis Hotel Casino
16 Sep Sioux City, IA Tyson Events Center
17 Sep Fort Dodge, IA Central Plaza
CHRIS LANE TOUR DATES
JUL 21 - JUL 23 Country Jam Eau Claire, WI
JUL 28 Waterside District Norfolk, VA
JUL 29 Power Plant Live! Baltimore, MD
AUG 5 Seward County Fair Seward, NE
AUG 10 Jenks Club Point Pleasant Beach, NJ
AUG 11 Cape Cod Melody Tent Barnstable, MA
AUG 12 Bold Point Park East Providence, RI
AUG 13 R10 Venue Long Creek, NB
AUG 14 Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom Hampton Beach, NH
SEP 10 Waterfront Park San Diego, CA
SEP 16 Central Park Plaza Valparaiso, IN
SEP 17 Splash into Country – Rise Up McHenry, IL
OCT 1 AvidXchange Music Factory Charlotte, NC
OCT 8 The Big Red Barn Retreat Columbia, SC
OCT 14 Boots In The Park Bakersfield, CA
OCT 15 Boots In The Park Santa Clarita, CA
DEC 1 Canadian Tire Centre Ottawa, Canada
DEC 2 Centre Bell Montreal, QC
DEC 3 Budweiser Gardens London, ON
DEC 4 Scotiabank Arena Toronto, ON
(click on any image to enlarge and see in full)
RUNAWAY JUNE |
BIG AND RICH |
john ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com |
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