Check out the first part of my Day 1 review here!
After a successful afternoon at the BBC Radio 2 stage, it was time to head into the Arena for the first Main Stage acts of the weekend. We got even more artists on Friday night than usual, with Breland kicking off the evening with a special opening set. He certainly seems to be a bit of an organiser favourite – from playing the smaller stages last year, in 2023 he’d bagged himself the opening Main Stage spot, an After Party, and a slot as co-host of the festival.
If I’m honest, his set was a mixed one for me, as I find his music as a whole too. I enjoyed songs like Beers On Me, For What It’s Worth and Cross Country, but am not a big fan of tracks like Throw It Back and Praise The Lord – lyrics like ‘Bubble-bubble, you been eating your McDoubles’, ‘If you sexy and you know it, make it clap’, and ‘He [as in Jesus] rockin’ with me, that’s for sure’ aren’t really the thought-provoking lyrics that made me get into country.
However, I will give it to Breland that he certainly has the charisma to be a star. His sets are some of the most energetic I’ve ever seen, and he’s funny too – he told us about being in a bar in Brisbane when a song of his came on the radio. He saw some girls singing along to it, and told them ‘This is my song!’, to which they replied ‘Me too!’ Not my favourite set but my mind about Breland did change after seeing his After Party – stay tuned to find out why…
A relatively new addition to C2C, next up was Introducing Nashville, a quasi-writers round where three artists are invited to share acoustic versions of their songs and the stories behind them. This year, we had Caylee Hammack, my interviewee Tyler Braden, and Alana Springsteen.
Each artist had time for three songs, so Caylee kicked us off with a song she was supposed to have played at C2C 2020 (before he was cancelled due to the pandemic) – Family Tree. Sounding like a young Dolly Parton, her next song was new track I Ain’t Coming Over, preceded by a warning ‘don’t date your co-writers’ (even if they do make for good songs). Her last pick was a sweet one – Only Good Things, about manifesting the best into your life.
Tyler was next, immediately getting the UK crowd to warm to him by announcing he likes Earl Grey tea, and then absolutely blowing us away with his powerful performance of Neon Grave. Fans of Chris Stapleton and Luke Combs, you need to add Tyler to your playlist. He opted for a new song next, the aptly titled Friends, about not being able to stay friends after a breakup and ended with the raw Try Losing One. If he’s not selling out arenas like this in the future, I’ll be extremely surprised.
Alana also shared a new song with us first - shoulder to cry on, the clever lyrics of which I really loved: ‘This heart’s about to break right on the interstate, I ain’t gonna make it home so I’m pulling over ‘cause I need a shoulder to cry on’. Next was the title track of her upcoming album twenty something, and finally you don’t deserve a country song. Her songwriting really hits all of the right notes: ‘You don’t get to be the one they’ll think it’s about, you didn’t give me anything that’s worth writing down. You don’t get to tell your friends I can’t let you go, no, you don’t get to hear your name on the radio.’ Three very enjoyable acts who I only wish we’d heard more from throughout the weekend.
If Tyler Braden had set the bar when it comes to impressive vocals, up next on the Spotlight Stage was newcomer Corey Kent. He made the most of his short slot, showing off his vocals on Tumbleweed and Highways before ending with most well-known song Wild As Her. With a powerful, raspy voice, Corey commanded the Arena, and left me looking forward to hearing his full set on the BBC Radio 2 stage the next day.
The C2C headlining lineup was pretty lacking in female artists (do better, C2C), but one of the few who made the cut was Lainey Wilson, and she definitely made her mark throughout her set. There was definitely no chance of getting bored during Lainey’s show, as she danced her way around the stage, belting out with an incredibly distinctive and strong voice. The best bit – she really looked like she was enjoying it.
Lainey’s energy was contagious as she powered her way through songs like the uber-fun Rock and Roll Hoochie Koo, Smells Like Smoke and the rocky Hold My Halo. I loved how she introduced her band in rhyme throughout a cover of Jean Knight’s Mr. Big Stuff, and she truly shone on tracks like Watermelon Moonshine (which she performed on the TV series Yellowstone) and Heart Like A Truck. She gave us stamina, bell-bottom country (‘country with a flare’) and some heartbreaking lyrics – about leaving her childhood love to chase her dream, she sang: ‘You don’t give a rock to a rolling stone.’ I love a set that ends up being unexpectedly brilliant, and Lainey Wilson’s was just that.
MacKenzie Porter returned for another set, this time on the Spotlight Stage. With only three songs to choose, Spotlight artists have to pick well, and MacKenzie certainly did so. She started with a stripped-back version of These Days, followed by Pickup (which received a great response from the crowd), and ended with one she knew everyone would know – Thinking ‘Bout You. What’s more, she even teased about an upcoming track written by Lainey herself – keep your eyes peeled for Chasing Tornadoes, coming soon!
For myself and many fans, the C2C 2023 lineup had been a bit of a disappointment – mostly returning acts, we were seeing many of the same names we’d seen over the years. I particularly love seeing new acts, so thank god for Jordan Davis – Jordan didn’t waste time in playing his hit songs, kicking off his set with What My World Spins Around, Singles You Up and Damn Good Time. This is a man made for stadium tours, and his voice and energy were the perfect match for The O2 Arena.
After getting us in the groove, Jordan started telling us more about his songs, including how surprised he was that a song about Walmart became his biggest hit (Slow Dance In A Parking Lot), one he wrote about getting over a breakup (One Beer In Front Of The Other) and one inspired by watching his children grow up (Next Thing You Know). One thing I really appreciate about a lot of country artists is that they genuinely seem like they’re in it for the enjoyment rather than the money or the fame, and Jordan’s genuine surprise at seeing how well the crowd responded to his music really solidified this for me.
Watching his set made me realise just how many of Jordan’s songs are hugely popular – Almost Maybes, Money Isn’t Real, Need To Not and Take It From Me all being sung along to by everyone in the crowd. Of course, his set had to end with a song he told us he’d written about the three most important things to him: his faith in Jesus, his friends, and his family – Buy Dirt. Jordan sang ‘money can’t buy you happiness’ but hey, it can buy you tickets to see Jordan Davis, and I think they’re kind of the same thing.
Our last act on the Spotlight stage was Ashley Cooke, who endeared us all with the little UK flag she’d stuck onto the end of her guitar. Treating us to a ten minute journey of her biggest hits to date, she played getting into, it’s been a year, and Never Til Now. She told us 2022 had been one of the craziest years of her life yet, and with a voice like that, I have no doubt that 2023 is about to get even crazier.
Out of all three days of C2C 2023, I really think we lucked out with the Friday night lineup – Lainey Wilson and Jordan Davis are both stars in their own right, but if there was one artist I couldn’t wait to see on the Main Stage, it was Thomas Rhett. Dress in a Rolling Stones t-shirt, backwards baseball cap, and turquoise guitar in hand, he treated us to hit after hit from the moment he stepped on stage – Craving You, Look What God Gave Her, Half Of Me, Life Changes and Slow Down Summer. He took us on a trip back to ‘where it all began’ with a mashup of Get Me Some Of That, It Goes Like This and Vacation – if the crowd hadn’t already been dancing before, they certainly were then.
After performing one of my favourite T-Rhett songs, Paradise, he took a moment to tease the crowd about a special guest he wanted to bring on stage, someone who had played The O2 Arena something like 21 times… ladies and gentlemen, Niall Horan! The crowd went wild as the Irish singer stepped on stage in a Canadian tuxedo to join Thomas in a performance of his song Slow Hands. Luke Combs and Ed Sheeran last year, Niall this year – country music really knows how to pull ‘em.
It’s hard not to enjoy yourself when you’re watching a Thomas Rhett show, and it’s also hard not to feel the deep love he has for his wife Lauren, which was easily felt throughout many of the songs he played for us – Angels (Don’t Always Have Wings), Die A Happy Man (which got the biggest cheers of the evening), Feeling Country and Unforgettable. Find yourself a partner like Thomas Rhett, and I’d say you’re in for a good life. The night ended with three of his most recognisable songs (although aren’t they all?) – Crash And Burn, T-Shirt and What’s Your Country Song. I had a blast throughout Thomas’s set, but if I’m honest, most of the songs he played were old – don’t get me wrong, I love a good throwback, but I would have loved hearing more from Where We Started or Country Again (Side A) – if you want my advice, don’t miss out on songs like Bass Pro Hat and Ya Heard!
So there you have it, C2C Country 2 Country Day 1 - off to a good start! My top artists of the day: Drake Milligan, Tyler Braden, Lainey Wilson and Jordan Davis – who were your favourites?
Still two more days of C2C to come (and plenty of interviews too!) Be the first to know when they’re posted by dropping me a follow on Twitter @CiarasCountry – thanks for reading!
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