For Zach Bryan’s The Quittin’ Time Tour, the fast-rising superstar has managed to make arenas feel like intimate backyard jam sessions – which is exactly what he delivered during his first of three nights at Los Angeles’ Crypto.com.
With a stage situated in the center of the floor, allowing for every seat in the house to be sold with no obstructed view, the set up was simple: string lights hung on either side of the rectangular platform, dangling over the general admission pits, while four screens were suspended high above the stage, flipping between music video clips, personal video footage and close-ups of what was happening down below.
The casual setting allowed for a rare type of fluidity for a concert of its size, with Bryan gliding from each of the four mics on stage – one positioned on each side, assuring nobody in the arena was left out – with a comfortable ease. The set up also forced him to ensure each and every note he sang was special, so that no matter what side he was singing to, nobody felt cheated out of enjoying their favorite song (but that doesn’t mean he didn’t also have a few lyrical slip-ups, adding to the casualness of it all).
And for good measure, Bryan’s seven-piece backing band also moved about the stage, each contributing to the jam band-esque nature of the show. “Me and all these guys behind me grew up in a really small town in Oklahoma,” Bryan told the crowd, noting the musicians on stage were some of his best friends.
Not much for words, Bryan used his to endlessly thank the crowd and share his shock and appreciation for selling out arenas like this one around the country. He doubled down on the humility after introducing each song, which he would follow by saying, “I hope you don’t hate it.” Judging by the ear-numbing singalongs that reverberated throughout the venue, surely no one did. “I don’t want to say this because I might get canceled online,” said Bryan, eyes widened, “but this is the loudest crowd we’ve had.”
Below are the best moments from night one of Byran’s Los Angeles stop.
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His Energetic Entrance
With the stage being in the center of the arena, Bryan szx forced to enter through the dense crowd (by way of a slim pathway blocked off for him and his band). “Let’s go!” screamed an announcer as Bryan made his way down the path, illuminated by fans’ phone lights capturing the moment. With his band in place, and already playing the opening chords to “Overtime,” Bryan stepped on with his guitar already strapped on. “How’re we feeling, Los Angeles?” he asked a roaring crowd before diving right into a punchier version of the hit. “Thank you so much for being here,” he said soon after. “I hope everyone’s having the best evening of their life.”
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His Rare But Revealing Insights
“Nobody knows this, but I wrote this song in Los Angeles,” Bryan said of “Fifth of May,” a song that cites Western Kentucky and East L.A. Early on he flubbed a line, but jumped right back in, saying with a smile, “I told the boys I wouldn’t mess up tonight and I already did, I’m so so sorry.”
After the song ended, Bryan opened up a bit more, telling fans: “I started this music shit four years ago… I had no idea I’d end up here tonight.” Later on, while introducing “Nine Ball,” he shared yet another little-known story about how Matthew McConaughey ended up in the music video. After revealing his girlfriend, Brianna LaPaglia, came up with the idea, Bryan told her: “You’re f—ing crazy, no way that’s going to happen.” But, he sent a DM anyway and soon enough, McConaughey called Bryan to tell him one thing: “Alright, alright, alright.”
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A Killer One-Two Punch
Of all of Zach Bryan’s stellar collaborations, he placed two of the biggest back-to-back in the setlist, performing “Dawns,” which features Maggie Rogers, before “I Remember Everything,” which features Kacey Musgraves and scored Bryan his first No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. While Bryan began “Dawns” acoustically, singing under a single spotlight with his rasp only accompanied by his own guitar, the song ended in a freewheeling jam session for which Bryan hopped into his guitarists’ sphere of cymbals. And despite the emotional intimacy of each record, the songs conjured up impassioned singalongs from the arena, proving that even the most tender of duets can sound right at home performed solo on an arena stage.
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His Very Special Guest (Or Two)
Though neither Rogers nor Musgraves joined Bryan on stage (both have previously performed their duets with him on tour), he did welcome The War and Treaty on stage for their collaboration “Hey Driver.” As Bryan told the crowd, “Usually when we sing this we sound like s–t, but we’re in luck tonight.” The married duo opened for Bryan (and will again tonight, Monday, June 3), and delivered a rousing and soulful set of their own, during which they debuted three new songs. “We’re working on a new record,” shared Tanya, who later asked the audience if they should include one of the new songs on the project. And who knows, perhaps they will team back up with Bryan for a duet on their album this time.
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The Wildly Chaotic, Fun-Filled Encore
After performing “Quittin’ Time,” Bryan ignored that title’s implications by returning to the stage for a final song, a never-ending rendition of “Revival.” As Bryan allowed each member of his band to show off their skills, introducing them before requesting that they “prove it,” he was joined by even more friends on stage: his girlfriend sang along with influence Jake Shane (@passthatpuss) and toward the end even Tate McRae joined in on the fun, dancing and laughing with the two as t-shirt cannons fired off into the crowd. “That’s all we got, Los Angeles,” said Bryan, before diving back into the song full-force, declaring with utmost certainty: “We’re having an all night revival.”
