“IF HE WANTED TO, HE WOULD!”
That’s what a fan proclaimed as Tim McGraw filled fans’ hearts and souls with “One Bad Habit” and projected clips of his wife, Faith Hill, and himself throughout their love story.
The night kicked off with an opening from the fresh-to-the scene group Heartwreckers with support from Grammy-Award winner Carly Pearce.
Then the lights went down, and heads turned to the stage looking for McGraw. The band kicked off the song “Truck Yeah,” while the screen lit up with a black-and-red silhouette projection of the singer posing and tipping the brim of his cowboy hat. He made his theatrical entrance, rising up from the stage trap door in the midst of a fog.
McGraw is known for his country twang sound, record breaking tours, and countless awards. He hails from Start, Louisiana, a town so proud of his celebrity that their welcome sign states, “Home of Country Great Tim McGraw.”
“The Great” entertained the area with a multitude of his famous hits as well as songs from his album, “Standing Room Only,” which the tour celebrates.
Mid way through the night, McGraw spoke about the world. He opened the conversation with a lighthearted joke mentioning his three daughters and saying nobody listens to him when he talks. “But the best side of that, is Faith and I are so proud that we have raised strong, independent, intelligent, humble young women, who have agency over themselves and their bodies. And THAT’S all a dad can ask for for his daughters,” he shared, a proud proclamation ahead of next weekend’s Father’s Day.
McGraw then stated that the band and the audience’s job was to forget all of the “craziness outside” and just have a good time.
A good time they had. McGraw’s set list perfectly balanced crowd connection, light show and projection—and intensity. There was not a single moment of the performance where the crowd experienced a lull, all credited to McGraw’s uniquely captivating and never wavering stage presence. He made the fans a part of the show, leading them in clapping to the songs, shaking the hands of the fans he could reach, and waving to the fans he couldn’t. Towards the end of the night, he lead the crowd through an a capella rendering of his hit “Humble and Kind.” The audience recognized his stardom, but it also felt like McGraw recognized them just as much.
As someone who has never declared themselves as a regular listener of country music, after Friday night’s unforgettable performance, this reviewer can certainly say, “I am now a Tim McGraw fan.” Indeed, the crowd might have forgotten the craziness outside” for an evening, but they won’t soon forget McGraw’s charismatic performance.
