I grew up listening to Kacey Musgraves, so my excitement for this concert has been a long time coming. She's been an icon to me for as long as I can remember. I have a memory of going over to a friend’s house in second grade and being so thrilled to get on her laptop to watch the “Follow Your Arrow” (which she did play!) music video.
(Earlier this same week, I got to see Jack White for the second time, another one of the artists from my childhood, which is the next piece I’ll be working on!)
When my mom asked me if I wanted to join my sister and her for the show, my immediate answer was “yes”. My mom is the foundation for my love and knowledge of music. Because of her, I have been exposed to so many genres and gained an appreciation for all types of music.
As soon as I knew I was going, I already had my outfit planned. Personally, one of the best parts of going to a concert is planning a fire fit and taking photos in it. Kacey’s show would definitely be one where people are upping their game, so I needed to match the energy.
Since Kacey is a country singer, I knew I had to dress the part, something I can finally get away with thanks to football season.After my freshman year, I quickly learned that UT game-day outfits were just as much a part of the experience as the games themselves. Much like concerts, half the fun was putting the outfit together. By the start of my sophomore year, I had accumulated four denim skirts, two denim dresses and more than 20 Texas shirts. What can I say? I’m committed.
For the concert, I chose a dark navy blue denim dress from Altar’d State that I paired with tan boots I thrifted from my job (Plato’s Closet) last summer and a black cowboy hat. I’ve been searching for a tan cowboy hat to match my boots, but have yet to find one I like. Even though the outfit was simple, it perfectly encapsulated the look I was going for. It also helped that I could wear the outfit to the Texas State Fair, where the OU game was taking place.
My spirit org (shoutout Texas Sunshines), like many spirit orgs, has an annual trip to Dallas (where I’m from!) for the OU game. I decided to go because who says I couldn’t do both? (My mom actually was very against me doing so much.) Regardless, I did it, and everything worked out for the best! Not to mention, going to a concert after such a devastating loss against OU slightly remedied my sadness.
After being at the fair all day, sweaty, tired, and smelling like animals, I desperately called a Lyft, which is the worst possible thing you can do when it’s so busy. Not only is Dallas normally chaotic, but the state fair, the OU game, and Kacey’s show only added to the mayhem. By the time I finally found my pickup spot, three other Lyft drivers had dropped me and forty-five minutes had passed. The AC in that car was life-saving, as I had trekked outside of the fair only needing to be on the opposite side of where I was.
Due to some miscommunication between my family and me, I ended up at the wrong place, but quickly resolved the issue by calling yet another Lyft, this time readying myself for any potential complications. Eventually, slightly late, I found myself at the restaurant to eat with my mom and sister before the show.
Stuffed and enlivened, the three of us made our way to the venue: the American Airlines Center. I’ve only seen one other artist here before, and it was the Jonas Brothers when I was in middle school, so I had little to no memory of its layout. It was huge but not as large as I was expecting.
My mom is a concert connoisseur, so she always gets good seats. We were in the closest seated section near the front of the stage, so our view was more than ideal. Kacey’s center stage was in the shape of a star, and a larger, rounder one went around it that I learned from my mom rotates in a circle. Over the stage was a screen, and below it, a circular part, where during the show, star decorations, a disco penis, and fireworks would come out. In the background of the set was a replica of a trailer with an American and Texas flag hanging on the wall. Hanging above the trailer were the words “Middle of Nowhere”, the name of Kacey’s most recent album (it’s so good, please listen to it!).
Kacey’s opener was William Beckmann, a country singer from Del Rio whose voice is as smooth as butter and whose looks are easy on the eye. I haven’t been so impressed by an opener in a long time. I have never heard of a man who more resembles an angel. His voice immediately drew me in, and I stayed transfixed until I was pulled away to meet up with my aunt and uncle, who were also at the show for their anniversary.
After talking to them and some fellow concertgoers, taking multiple bathroom trips, and a stop at the merch table (another one of my rules for concerts is that you have to buy merch as a memento), we had the ever-doomed break between the opener and the main act. We assumed Kacey would be out by 9. We couldn’t have been more wrong. 9:15 came and still nothing until the lights dimmed and a giant red five-minute timer came onto the screen above the stage accompanied by the song “Thunderstruck” by AC/DC. UT ever present in my mind, my brain was reminded of how this same track is played at DKR during games. A familiar rush of exhilaration coursed through me, pushing me to my feet.
As the numbers counted down, the fever of the crowd became more and more palpable. It felt like we were one being, all here for one person, and now that person would finally be bestowed upon us. As cliché as it sounds, it really was the moment we had all been waiting for.
As the clock hit zero, you could feel everyone hold their breath, waiting for what was to come next. Less than half a second later, the band walked onto the stage and “Everybody Wants To Be A Cowboy” started playing, Kacey’s silhouette appearing on the trailer. Her voice filled the venue as she sang the opening lyrics, “It’s Friday night on the East side”. My mom, who was to the right of me, grabbed my arm. This song is one of her favorites on the album, and she had called it earlier when we were guessing which song Kacey would start with.
As she sang, Kacey slowly made her way to the stage, passing through the pit of people, grazing their hands as she walked by, a touch from god (essentially). After “Everybody Wants To Be A Cowboy” ended, she immediately went into “Dry Spell”, which was the first single off of the album and one of my favorites. It was my summer song. I loved it so much that I could listen to it multiple times in a row and still, I wouldn't be tired of it. It is the utmost form of perfection and exactly my type of country (which is very selective because I can only put up with so much). Also, as a side note, the music video for “Dry Spell” is amazing. I was rewatching it while writing this review, and it’s so funny because the whole video takes place in a grocery store but with sexual innuendos, a flawless representation of the song’s implications.
After giving us only a tiny taste of Middle From Nowhere, Kacey traveled back in time to star-crossed, Golden Hour, and Same Trailer Different Park to perform only the best. She played three of my favorites: “justified”, “High Horse,” and “Butterflies”. During “Butterflies”, a butterfly drone fluttered around the venue, its blue wings illuminating the sky.
Her setlist throughout the show was phenomenal; we honestly couldn’t have asked for a better one. My only complaint is that she played songs from every album but the one before Middle of Nowhere: Deeper Well, which my mom loves. However, to make up for this fault, Kacey performed several songs she said she hadn’t played in years, including “Good Ol’ Boys Club” and “It Is What It Is”. Among these oldies was “Merry Go ‘Round”, which is when we saw the revolving stage in action, a very fitting touch to the song’s title. As she sang and played her guitar, because she is a multi-talented baddie like that, the stage turned so that she could play to every corner of her audience.
After taking a break from Middle of Nowhere, she returned to it, playing another one of my favorites, “I Believe in Ghosts,” and her duet with Miranda Lambert, “Horses and Divorces”. I was hoping that we would get a guest appearance with Miranda, as the Austin shows did, but it wasn’t so. Nonetheless, we did get another special guest: James Talarico, the Democratic candidate for the Senate. Kacey has always been very politically vocal, often in opposition to some of her fellow country musicians, so it was no surprise to see him in the front row of her show. As she sang a cover of the Texas Tornados’ “(Hey Baby) ¿Qué pasó?”, she walked around the stage with a camera behind her, interacting with the audience. As she went by Talarico, she turned back to the camera and asked, “Wait, who was that?” as a little hint-hint, nod-nod to his appearance. It was so badass.
The remainder of the show was a mixture of albums, Kacey never staying on one for too long. Before “Rhinestoned” from Middle of Nowhere, Kacey made a quip about wanting disco balls, but unless you know the show like my mom and I do, you wouldn’t think of it as an out-of-the-ordinary request. If you also know anything about Kacey, you also know that she’s a showstopper who is all about going big rather than going home. And just like her home state of Texas, her disco balls were bigger than any other, and that’s because they were literally disco balls. From the ceiling emerged a pair of silver and sparkling testicles that had a seat for Kacey to sit on while she sang. They scooped her up, and she rose to the ceiling, singing and swinging as the balls twirled her around. At one point, she even kicked her feet in delight, having as good a time as we were. Unfortunately, the balls only lasted for a short period of time and were gone by the time the next song (“Mexico Honey”) started.
The rest of the concert flew by, my mind hardly able to take all of it in properly. Kacey bounced from strong-hearted ballads like “Space Cowboy”, where both the screen above the stage and the stage itself were lit up in galaxy patterns and colors, to “Follow Your Arrow”, where the whole band joined her on the revolving stage as it glowed in rainbows. To top everything off, she finished with a cover of “All My Ex’s Live in Texas” by George Strait, but changed the female names to male to fit her preference. (As a bisexual, I can say that bisexual Kacey would be too much for this world, I’m afraid.)
All in all, this concert might be the best one I’ve been to all year. As it started, throughout it, and especially at the end, I was in tears. I hadn’t realized how much it would mean to me to finally see a woman whom I’ve both always looked up to and listened to. She sounds exactly like she does on the tracks, her vocals and guitar playing always spot-on. Her onstage persona is infectious, and she looks beyond incredible; her makeup, hair, and clothes immaculate and country as always. On the night I saw her, she wore a glittery silver and blue tank top that resembled the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders’, which during her last tour in Dallas, she brought onstage. I’m so jealous. My mom got to see that performance, and I didn’t. Once again, I was hoping Kacey might bring them onstage, but she’s nothing but spontaneous and ever-changing. I don’t think repetitive is in her vocab.
I loved her as a kid, I love her now, and I can almost guarantee that I’ll love her forever. When I was younger, I saw her Christmas show (another wonderful album you should check out) at Billy Bob’s in Fort Worth, but I was so young that I barely remember it, so getting to see her at a time that I will remember forever means the world to me. I hope I can see her again in the future. I want to be like my mom, who has now seen her on five separate occasions. That would be my Roman Empire.