Concerts
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Ted Nugent has responded after a venue in Birmingham, Alabama, cancelled his upcoming show due to social media backlash.
It all started when it was announced that the guitarist — who is outwardly conservative and a longtime supporter of Donald Trump — would be performing at the Avondale Brewing Co. venue on July 18 as part of his Adios Mofo farewell tour. The post about the concert had thousands of comments protesting the show and Nugent’s right-wing political views, according to AL, which led to venue to cancel the show.
“We have heard the concerns of the Avondale community, which is so important to us, and in conjunction with our partners, have taken the necessary steps to to cancel the Ted Nugent concert scheduled for July 18,” the venue wrote.
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Nugent took to Twitter on Friday (May 5) to respond to a story about the situation, retweeting an article and writing, “liars & haters drunk on stupid incapable to debate me.”
The ringer has most recently come under fire recently for his transphobic tweets and remarks, most recently blasting Anheuser-Busch for working with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney. “How can they possibly have a meeting around the table and come to the conclusion that they’re going to piss in the face of the people who pay their salaries?” he said on a recent episode of Newsmax’s Eric Bolling the Balance about the brand’s “core consumer demographic,” seemingly referring to conservatives. “This is the epitome of cultural deprivation in an ongoing tsunami of cultural deprivation.”
His history of disturbing remarks also includes saying that survivors of the Parkland school shooting are wrong to blame the NRA for mass shootings and that the Florida students calling for gun control have “no soul” and are “mushy brained children.”
He also tested positive for COVID-19 in 2021, months after he said the virus was “not a real pandemic,” and weighed in on the Ferguson decision in 2014 that let police officer Darren Wilson walk scot-free after shooting and killing unarmed civilian Michael Brown. “Here’s the lessons from Ferguson America- Don’t let your kids growup to be thugs who think they can steal, assault & attack cops as a way of life & badge of black (dis)honor. Don’t preach your racist bulls— ‘no justice no peace’ as blabbered by Obama’s racist Czar Al Not So Sharpton & their black klansmen,” he wrote in his deeply offensive post at the time.
Due to a lightning advisory, Nashville’s Nissan Stadium issued a shelter in place warning Sunday night (May 7) just an hour before Taylor Swift‘s first opening act of the evening, Gracie Abrams, was to take the stage for that night’s Eras Tour concert.
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“For those in Nissan Stadium, please proceed to the shelter areas as directed by staff. Please remain calm and proceed to the covered and interior areas of the stadium,” the venue first posted in a severe weather alert on social media at 5:40 p.m. local time.
“At this time, lightning is approaching Nissan Stadium. Please move to the covered areas of the concourses or ramps, or shelter areas as directed by stadium officials. All guests currently in cars, please remain in your vehicle. If you are currently approaching the entrance of Nissan Stadium, please quickly proceed to any open gate and seek shelter immediately,” Nissan, an open-air stadium, followed up in another tweet.
The stadium then posted: “Hang in there, Swifties! We appreciate your patience as we wait out this storm. More updates to come. P.S. Keep singing your favorite songs in the concourse! We hear y’all and we love it!”
By 6:57 p.m. CT, Nissan Stadium communicated that a delayed start time for Swift was expected.
“Due to lightning in the area, Nissan Stadium will remain under Shelter in Place until the current storm passes,” a tweet read. “We anticipate Taylor Swift taking the stage at a delayed start time. More information will be released ASAP.”
Billboard reached out to a representative for Swift on Sunday night and will keep this report updated.
On The Eras Tour, Swift has historically been taking the stage at approximately 7:50 p.m. or just after. Her more than three-hour set follows two openers (on this night, it was to be Abrams and Phoebe Bridgers). Sunday night’s show is the last of three Nashville tour dates on her Eras schedule, and then she heads to Philadelphia next weekend.
At 7:54 p.m. local time on Sunday, Swift checked in with fans on social media, sharing live concert photos from this weekend. She performed at the venue both Friday and Saturday night.
“Even though we have one last show in Nashville tonight I just have to post these photos causeeeee… it’s been WILD. I got to announce Speak Now (my version) is coming on 7/7, got to perform ‘Nothing New’ with boss genius/baby angel face @phoebebridgers for the first time, and have been so moved by these beautiful, generous Nashville crowds!!!! I just can’t believe it. PS I know there’s talk of a rainy weather vibe tonight but I’m ready to play, see you sooon!!” she wrote in the update.

Taylor Swift‘s closest friend since high school, Abigail Anderson Berard, got to share a special moment with the star during the second night of The Eras Tour in Nashville on Saturday night (May 6).
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Sitting at the piano during the highly-anticipated part of her set featuring surprise songs, Swift joked, “I feel like if I give you one piece of information you’d know exactly what song I was about to play,” before singing the Fearless classic “Fifteen” for her “beautiful, redheaded high school best friend,” who was in attendance at the show.
Fans seated near the Nissan Stadium VIP tent where Swift’s friends were enjoying the concert captured Abigail’s sweet reaction and uploaded the videos to TikTok.
Swift added a line to the song on Saturday night, one that contributed to the reflective vibe of hearing the high school song performed in their 30s.
“Back then I swore I was gonna marry him someday/ But I realized some bigger dreams of mine/ And Abigail gave everything she had/ To a boy who changed his mind/ And we both cried,” she sang, topping the original lyric off with “and that’s alright.”
Earlier in the week, the pair shared a snapshot of themselves laughing together on Instagram, with the caption: “‘Cause when you’re… 33.”
See the reaction to the surprise concert moment — and some clips of Swift’s 2023 performance of “Fifteen” –below. Keep up with all the surprise songs Swift has played on The Eras Tour here.

Something unexpected in the crowd caught Taylor Swift‘s eye during her performance of “Marjorie” in Nashville Friday night (May 5).
Dozens of printed photos of Swift’s grandmother Marjorie, who inspired the personal Evermore song, were held up by fans near the mainstage for Swift to see. The thoughtful tribute to Swift’s grandmother left her emotional in front of an audience of 70,000 at the first of three shows at the city’s Nissan Stadium this weekend.
Her mouth wide open at the sight of Marjorie’s portrait being displayed on The Eras Tour, Swift stayed composed enough to continue to sing: “If I didn’t know better, I’d think you’re still around.” She then smiled and put her hand to her heart as the song concluded.
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The vast audience also lit up the stadium, from floor seats to nosebleeds, with their phone lights throughout Swift’s performance of “Marjorie” like they had the weekend before at her Atlanta stop.
“What are you trying to do to me?” she asked the crowd as she sat down at the piano in Nashville. “Oh my god, that was so beautiful.”
“So that song, Marjorie, that was a song that I wrote about my mom’s mom, my grandmother,” she said, giving the backstory to anyone in attendance who might not have known. “She was a singer too. And she passed away when I was 13.”
“I just know that my mom, right now, is just like bawling and has been for the solid last five-and-a-half minutes, and I love you guys so much. That was so meaningful and so special,” said Swift.
The project was led by a fan who passed out hundreds of Marjorie printouts to Swifties in her section at the concert. She documented her experience on TikTok.
“I couldn’t be more proud of making this crazy idea into reality. Lugging 300 copies around a crowded stadium wasn’t ideal, but for her I’d do it, ‘a million little times’!” TikTok user Jessica Morris (@auntie_hero) wrote of “Project Marjorie” following Friday night’s concert.
See Swift’s reaction to the moment on that TikTok account, and in another fan clip below.
50 Cent is hitting the road this summer for a global tour called The Final Lap that will kick off on July 21 with a show at the Maverik Center in Salt Lake City and keep him on the road through a planned Nov. 12 gig at the Resorts World Arena in Birmingham, England.
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The Live Nation-produced outing is a celebration of the 20th anniversary of Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson’s 2003 debut album, Get Rich or Die Tryin’, will feature a set list comprised of 50’s greatest hits and tracks he hasn’t performed live in decades according to a release. He will be joined on all the dates by his longtime friend Busta Rhymes and by Jeremih on the North American dates, with more guests to be announced later.
Fans can sign up for tickets for the North American leg via Ticketmaster’s Verified Fan, with registration open now through Sunday (May 7) at 11:59 p.m. ET.; click here to register. A limited amount of tickets will be available during a general onsale beginning May 12 at 10 a.m. local time here while supplies last. Presale tickets for the European leg will go on sale beginning at 10 a.m. local time on May 10, with the general on sale kicking off on May 12 at 10 a.m. local time here.
The Final Lap North American and European tour dates:
July 21 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Maverik Center
July 23 – Denver, CO @ Ball Arena
July 25 – St. Louis, MO @ Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre
July 27 – Noblesville, IN @ Ruoff Music Center
July 28 – Nashville, TN @ Bridgestone Arena
July 29 – Cincinnati, OH @ Riverbend Music Center
July 31 – Toronto, ON @ Budweiser Stage
August 2 – Montreal, QC @ Bell Centre
August 3 – Mansfield, MA @ Xfinity Center
August 5 – Darien Center, NY @ Darien Lake Amphitheater
August 6 – Cleveland, OH @ Blossom Music Center
August 8 – Bristow, VA @ Jiffy Lube Live
August 9 – Brooklyn, NY @ Barclays Center
August 11 – Hartford, CT @ XFINITY Theatre
August 12 – Camden, NJ @ Freedom Mortgage Pavilion
August 13 – Virginia Beach, VA @ Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater at Virginia Beach
August 15 – Raleigh, NC @ Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek
August 16 – Charlotte, NC @ PNC Music Pavilion
August 17 – Atlanta, GA @ Lakewood Amphitheatre
August 19 – Tampa, FL @ MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre
August 20 – West Palm Beach, FL @ iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre
August 22 – Tuscaloosa, AL @ Tuscaloosa Amphitheater
August 24 – Houston, TX @ Toyota Center
August 25 – Dallas, TX @ Dos Equis Pavilion
August 27 – Albuquerque, NM @ Isleta Amphitheater
August 29 – Phoenix, AZ @ Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre
August 30 – Los Angeles, CA @ Crypto.com Arena
August 31 – Chula Vista, CA @ North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre
Sept. 2 – Mountain View, CA @ Shoreline Amphitheatre
Sept. 4 – Sacramento, CA @ Golden 1 Center
Sept. 6 – Ridgefield, WA @ RV Inn Style Resorts Amphitheater
Sept. 7 – Seattle, WA @ Climate Pledge Arena
Sept. 8 – Vancouver, BC @ Rogers Arena
Sept. 10 – Calgary, AB @ Scotiabank Saddledome
Sept. 11 – Edmonton, AB @ Rogers Place
Sept. 13 – Winnipeg, MB @ Canada Life Centre
Sept. 15 – St. Paul, MN @ Xcel Energy Center
Sept. 16 – Chicago, IL @ United Center
Sept. 17 – Detroit, MI @ Pine Knob Music Theatre
Sept. 28 – Amsterdam, Netherlands @ Ziggo Dome
Sept. 29 – Hamburg, Germany @ Barclays Arena
Sept. 30 – Copenhagen, Denmark @ Royal Arena
Oct. 4 – Oslo, Norway @ Spektrum*
Oct. 5 – Trondheim, Norway @ Spektrum*
Oct. 7 – Stockholm, Sweden @ Avicii Arena
Oct. 9 – Riga, Latvia @ Arena Riga*
Oct. 11 – Lodz Poland @ Atlas Arena
Oct. 14 – Berlin, Germany @ Mercedes-Benz Arena
Oct. 15 – Oberhausen, Germany @ Rudolf-Weber-Arena
Oct. 20 – Zurich, Switzerland @ Hallenstadion
Oct. 21 – Nice, France @ Palais Nikaia
Oct. 22 – Milan, Italy @ Mediolanum Forum
Oct. 24 – Munich, Germany @ Olympiahalle
Oct. 25 – Mannheim, Germany @ SAP Arena
Oct. 26 – Brussels, Belgium @ Forest National
Oct. 28 – Prague, Czech Republic @ O2 Arena
Oct. 31 – Strasbourg, France @ Zenith
Nov. 2 – Nantes, France @ Zenith
Nov. 3 – Paris, France @ La Defense Arena
Nov. 6 – Dublin, Ireland @ 3Arena
Nov. 9 – Glasgow, Scotland @ OVO Hydro
Nov. 10 – Manchester, England @ AO Arena
Nov. 11 – London, England @ The O2
Nov. 12 – Birmingham, England @ Resorts World Arena
*Non-Live Nation date

Live Nation announced the return of Concert Week on Thursday morning (May 4), the $25 all-in ticket deal that will cover more than 3,800 shows across North America this year. The week-long annual program will offer limited-time low-dough tickets specials for shows by more than 300 acts, including gigs by Janet Jackson, Fall Out Boy, Don Toliver, Maroon 5, Shania Twain, Snoop Dogg and more.
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Between May 10-16, fans can click here to see the full list of available shows, filtered by the events, venues or artists; on the site fans can also search for the closest city with a participating gig. Tickets will be available beginning with Verizon and Rakuten presales, with the both kicking off on May 9 at 10 a.m. ET through 11:59 p.m. local time.
Among the lengthy list of other acts participating in Concert Week are: 5 Seconds of Summer, The Offspring, Garbage and Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, the Outlaw Music Festival, Pantera, Hayley Kiyoko, Ghost, P!nk, Pepe Aguilar, Pentatonix, Avenged Sevenfold, Bebe Rexha, Beck & Phoenix, Hunter Hayes, Incubus, Jason Aldean, Rob Zombie & Alice Cooper, Rod Stewart, Boy George & Culture Club, Jelly Roll, Keith Urban, Snoop Dogg and Wiz Khalifa, Santana, Sam Hunt, RuPaul’s Drag Race, Brooks & Dunn, Charlie Puth, Def Leppard & Motley Crue, LL Cool J, Luke Bryan, Weezer, The Smashing Pumpkins, Maneskin, Louis Tomlinson, Miranda Lambert, Wizkid, Wu-Tang Clan and Nas and more.
Concert Week ticket will be available on a limited-time, while supplies last basis, with tickets including all fees upfront in the $25 cost; any taxes will be added at checkout as applicable in each city, state or venue. Click here to see the full list of participating events.
Starr Hill Presents & Haymaker Productions announce the inaugural Iron Blossom Music Festival, taking place in the heart of Richmond, Va. on Aug. 26 and 27. Iron Blossom will offer two days of topline musical talent in the idyllic and historic Monroe Park, located next to the campus of Virginia Commonwealth University.
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Iron Blossom will draw from Richmond’s vibrant and diverse community to bring fans a unique musical experience, with local artists sharing the stage with regional acts and international headliners. Headliners include singer-songwriter Hozier, indie rockers Lord Huron and indie pop singer Noah Kahan. Additional artists rounding out the two days of good vibes and harmonies include: Elle King, Faye Webster, Rayland Baxter, Colony House, The Heavy Heavy, Nikki Lane, Devon Gilfillian, Mipso, Son Little, Celisse and more.
The event is a partnership between Starr Hill Presents, IMGoing Events, Haymaker Productions, and Lovely Day Presents.
Ken MacDonald of IMGoing Events says “the growth of Richmond is on full display here. We look forward to having Iron Blossom be a showcase for the vibrancy and culture of the city and a positive, enduring part of the community.”
“This is the moment the people of Richmond deserve and Iron Blossom is the ‘arrival’ moment for music fans in Richmond,” says Tom Beals of Haymaker Productions. “It’s because of the fans that we’re able to do this at all. The love of live music is part of Richmond’s culture, and we get to share in that by bringing these artists to Monroe Park.”
In addition to these vibrant musical offerings, the Iron Blossom Music Festival will bring attendees the very best of Central Virginia’s food, beverage and maker communities. Fans will enjoy farm to table and various street foods, craft beers and cocktails, and wares from dozens of artisan vendors. A VIP experience is being offered, giving fans up-close stage views, an exclusive lounge with cash bars, vendors and more.
Tickets go on sale Thursday, May 4 at noon ET at IronBlossomFestival.com.

“Who else could pull together a night like this? Two nights!” declared Sheryl Crow onstage at the Hollywood Bowl during the second of the two concerts Sunday (April 30) to celebrate the 90th birthday of Willie Nelson — the peerless songwriter, singer, actor, author and activist.
“Our national treasure!” said Emmylou Harris, one of the dozen musicians exclusive to the bill of Night Two of Nelson’s birthday bash. The weekend’s concerts were billed as Long Story Short: Willie Nelson 90 and the second evening contained no shortage of storytelling, insights into Willie World and unforgettable collaborations.
After Billy Strings once again opened the evening with “Whiskey River” — the song with which Nelson has started every concert for decades—presenter Ethan Hawke spoke of Nelson’s willingness to fly the “flag of equality.” Proof came as Orville Peck emerged onstage, his fringed face mask firmly in place, to sing a song written by Ned Sublette and released by Nelson in 2006 in the wake of the film Brokeback Mountain. Titled “Cowboys Are Frequently, Secretly (Fond of Each Other),” the light-hearted ballad has been called the first LGBTQ-themed song by a major country artist.
“Thank you for always bringing people together,” said Norah Jones, who was joined onstage by Allison Russell. It takes exceptional talent and guts to reprise a classic duet originally recorded by Willie Nelson and Ray Charles. But Jones and Russell proved equal to the challenge, singing the epic tale of star-crossed lovers “Seven Spanish Angels,” their voices soaring over the Hollywood hills.
The inspiration for Nelson’s song “Me and Paul” was his longtime late friend and band member Paul English, who died in 2020. Onstage Sunday, Dwight Yoakam described English as Nelson’s drummer, bodyguard and “the Huck Finn to Willie’s Tom Sawyer.” Yoakam said he was “honored that Willie allowed me to do this particular song.” After all, Yoakam said, describing English’s role in Nelson’s life, “Willie wouldn’t have made it to 60” without him.
Waylon Payne introduced himself to the crowd as the son of Sammi Smith, one of the only women of the outlaw country movement and one of Nelson’s longtime friends, and “my daddy Jody Payne,” who played guitar in Nelson’s band for years before his death in 2013. As Margo Price bounced up and down with the band’s rhythm, she and Waylon Payne rollicked through Billy Joe Shaver’s “Fast Train To Georgia,” which Nelson has played live for many years.
Nelson’s son Micah, who performs as Particle Kid, shared the most hilariously detailed version yet of a family tale that emerged from the pandemic. He and his father had been playing dominoes when Willie Nelson came out with a phrase that Micah declared as “the best song you’ve never written.” The father challenged the son to turn it into a lyric. So, Micah recalled, he went into the family’s garage, “got high was shit, and I wrote a Willie Nelson song.” The chorus: “If I die when I’m high, I’ll be halfway to heaven.”
More storytelling came from Rodney Crowell, this time with a local twist. In the mid 1970s, Nelson was playing the Palomino Club on Lankershim Boulevard in Los Angeles when a somewhat spaced-out Crowell heard Nelson introduce Crowell’s song “‘Till I Gain Control Again” — and invite him to come up on stage. “I floated across the room,” Crowell recalled, before performing the song Sunday.
Beck, who stunned the crowd Saturday night with his version of “Hands on the Wheel,” from Red Headed Stranger, sang “Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain” on Sunday. But he also unwound his own wacky tale of connecting with Nelson. The video for his song “Jack-Ass” from his 1997 album Odelay was set in a coal mine — MTV had a lot to answer for, Beck said — with a script that called for a wizard to roll by in a coal cart. “So we called Willie Nelson and he said, ‘Sign me up.’ I don’t need to tell anyone here that Willie Nelson is the coolest.”
Wesley Shultz of the Lumineers shared a childhood memory of his father playing Nelson’s holiday song of a street vendor calling out to Christmas shoppers “hoping you won’t pass him by” as he offers “pretty paper, pretty ribbons of blue” to “wrap your presents to your darling from you.” As he and bandmate Jeremiah Fraites sang “Pretty Paper,” Schultz said he always associated Nelson’s voice “with the happiest moments of the year.”
“Twenty-one years ago, this is the first song I sang with Willie Nelson,” said Norah Jones, turning to the tall, white-haired 86-year singer beside her onstage. “Thank you for writing it.” With that, she and Kris Kristofferson duetted on “Help Me Make In Through The Night.”
Sheryl Crow recalled that when she was on the bill of Nelson’s 70th birthday concert at New York’s Beacon Theatre, Kristofferson gave her advice about performing with Nelson, given his inimitable vocal phrasing. “Don’t try to sing with him,” Kristofferson had said. “Just sing louder than him.” Crow performed her own gorgeous version of “Crazy.”
“Man, I’m nervous,” Dave Matthews told the crowd as he took the stage for a solo acoustic performance, preceded by his own tale from Willie World. The two had met in 1994 when Matthews played Farm Aid, Nelson’s annual benefit for family farmers. “After we played, we all got on the bus and proceeded to get high. When I thought we were finished, we were just getting started.” Matthews says his mother has a photo on her mantle of him and Nelson, taken that day. “She was so proud of me,” he said. Matthews performed “Funny How Time Slips Away” in a version dramatically different from Noah Jones’ rendition just 24 hours earlier, just one example of how Nelson’s songs have proven so adaptable and enduring
The night’s remarkable collaborations continued. Emmylou Harris, who had sung earlier with longtime collaborator Rodney Crowell, returned to the stage with Daniel Lanois on guitar to sing a haunting version of Lanois’ song “The Maker.” Nelson had recorded the song for his 1998 album Teatro, which Lanois produced. Jayme Johson teamed up with Warren Haynes on guitar and Booker T. Jones on piano and sang lead on “Georgia on My Mind,” beautifully accented by a harmonica solo from Nelson’s longtime sideman Mickey Raphael.
But the most inspired ensemble of the night came next. In 1985, Columbia Records released The Highwayman — an album credited to Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash and Kris Kristofferson — which spent 66 weeks on the Top Country Albums chart, reaching No. 1. The album’s title track, a masterful four-verse musical story from songwriter Jimmy Webb, spent 20 weeks on Hot Country Songs, also reaching No. 1. The foursome, who adopted the moniker of the Highwaymen, are still considered country music’s first supergroup. And on Sunday, “The Highwayman” was performed by the offspring of the original group — Lukas and Micah Nelson, Scooter Jennings and Rosanne Cash.
“I see Trigger on the stage,” said presenter Woody Harrelson, after Nelson’s battered yet sturdy acoustic guitar was placed in its stand. Nelson’s show-closing set — which included the crowd sing-along of “Happy Birthday” he had inadvertently cut off on Saturday — seemed to be particularly personal and reflective in his selection of songs and collaborators.
For “Stardust,” the title track of Nelson’s 1978 collection of standards, Booker T. Jones (who produced that massively successful disc) soloed on organ. Then Sheryl Crow reemerged to duet on “Far Away Places,” which she and Nelson had sung together for his 2013 duets collection All The Girls. And Nelson’s longtime producer and co-writer Buddy Cannon — they’re working on their 18th album together — accompanied his friend on the bittersweet “Something You Get Through” from the 2018 album Last Man Standing.
But perhaps the most striking choice Nelson made as the evening drew to a close were duets with two up-and-coming artists — as if seeking to end this celebration of his long life by passing the torch.
Little over a year ago, Lily Merola sang for a few dozen fans at the Beer Garden stage of the Luck Reunion festival on Nelson’s ranch outside Austin. Sunday, at the Hollywood Bowl, she sang a beautiful duet with Nelson on “Will You Remember Mine,” which the two had recorded for All the Girls. Then Billy Strings returned for the spirited “California Sober,” which Nelson has recorded with the young singer for his upcoming debut album.
Of course, Sunday’s show concluded with “One the Road Again,” “Will The Circle Be Unbroken,” “I’ll Fly Away” and, yes, “Happy Birthday.” But first Nelson had one more old friend to welcome — Keith Richards.
“Thank you, ladies and gentleman,” said Richards, trotting out a well-worn quip. “It’s good to be here; it’s good to be anywhere!” As Willie Nelson was joined by his sons, Lukas and Micah, Richards remarked “I’m surrounded by Nelsons! You guys should get a column.” (One member of the audience noted that only British fans in the crowd got that joke).
Richards and Nelson sang the 1973 Waylon Jennings hit “”We Had It All” (which the Rolling Stones released as a Some Girls album bonus track in 2011). But it was the next song from these two music survivors — Billy Joe Shaver’s “Live Forever” — that brought perspective to the weekend’s celebration. Two aging but vital voices, from Texas and England, came together to sing:
“I’m gonna live forever/ I’m gonna cross that river / I’m gonna catch tomorrow, now … Nobody here will ever find me / But I will always be around/ Just like the songs I leave behind me/ I’m gonna live forever, now.”
The final day of Pharrell’s Something in the Water 2023 festival in Virginia Beach was canceled on Sunday (April 30) due to severe weather. “We are disappointed to share that under the advisement of the city of Virginia Beach and the local authorities we have to cancel day three of SOMETHING IN THE WATER due to significant impacts to the festival site caused by severe weather,” read a statement from festival organizers around 6 p.m. about the forecasted storms approaching the area, as well as a tornado warning and damage from earlier weather.
“We did not make this decision easily but everyone’s safety is our top priority. We will be refunding 33% of the base price from admission passes,” they added, with refunds slated to be automatically processed beginning Monday (April 1).
The cancelation resulted in the scotching of scheduled sets by Grace Jones, the Clipse, Wu-Tang Clan, Nile Rodgers & Chic, Lil Uzi Vert, 100 Gecs, Aminé, Flo Milli and Lil Durk.
“No one wants to make this call, but we cannot predict nor negotiate with the weather tonight. It is our responsibility to ensure public safety above all else,” City Manager Patrick Duhaney said, according to the Virginian-Pilot. “The City thanks the Something in the Water team, our public safety teams and City staff for their hard work this weekend under fluctuating weather conditions, and we appreciate everyone’s understanding of this difficult decision.”
Founder Pharrell Williams posted a heartfelt note to fellow Virginians and attendees, writing, “We are the best. These past few days @sitw have been the best. Even during this Tornado Watch and Lightning Storm right now as I type, we are the best. Thank you for giving the folks that travel here that energy and that LOVE that only we can give. Thank you to our partners, the vendors, production, policemen, firemen, the city council, the mayor and all who volunteered. The spirit here was felt everywhere!”
Williams promised that 2024’s SITW dates will be shifted in an attempt to avoid inclement spring weather, as well as teasing “more acts, more merch, more food… just more!” next year. WAVY reported that the first two days of this year’s event were also impacted by weather, with some acts slated for Friday bumped to Saturday and Sunday and Saturday’s start time pushed back after weather caused issues on site the night before.
Friday’s lineup featured performances by Babyface Ray, Arcade Fire, Maren Morris, Skrillex Kehlani, Mumford & Sons and Kid Cudi, while day 2 saw sets from the Kid Laroi, Wet Leg, the Jonas Brothers, Lil Yachty, Machine Gun Kelly, Lil Wayne and Pharrell’s Phriends, which included guests A$AP Rocky, De La Soul, M.I.A., Diddy, Chris Brown Latto and more.
The first day of 2019’s inaugural edition of SITW in Williams’ hometown was canceled due to weather, throwing a wrench into planned sets from Dave Matthews Band, Migos, Pharrell & Friends, Diplo and more. The 2022 edition was moved to Washington, D.C. after Williams got involved in a dispute with city officials over what he called a “toxic” environment following the fatal police shooting of his cousin, Donovon Lynch.
See the announcements below.
Dearest Virginia,We are the best.These past few days @sitw #sitwfest have been the best.Even during this Tornado Watch and Lightning Storm right now as I type, we are the best.Thank you for giving the folks that travel here that energy and that LOVE that only we can give.… pic.twitter.com/pTGwbUY562— Pharrell Williams (@Pharrell) April 30, 2023
We are disappointed to share that under the advisement of the city of Virginia Beach and the local authorities we have to cancel day three of SOMETHING IN THE WATER due to significant impacts to the festival site caused by severe weather… (1/3) pic.twitter.com/cj4kQgiufl— SOMETHING IN THE WATER (@sitw) April 30, 2023
…passes. Refunds will be automatically processed beginning tomorrow, and take approximately 14 days. (3/3)— SOMETHING IN THE WATER (@sitw) April 30, 2023
As Willie Nelson played “On the Road Again” toward the close of the first of two star-packed birthday concerts at the Hollywood Bowl on Saturday (April 29), that song’s joyous declaration was more poignant than ever. “The life I love is making music with my friends,” he sang.
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More than 45 of those friends gathered over the two nights for what presenter Ethan Hawke called “a celebration of love — love of music, love of storytelling, and love of Willie Nelson… an American icon.”
Saturday’s spectacular show offered performances by: Beck with Daniel Lanois, Edie Brickell with Charlie Sexton, Leon Bridges with Gary Clark, Jr., Rosanne Cash with Kris Kristofferson, The Chicks, Charley Crockett, Snoop Dogg, Warren Haynes, Jack Johnson, Jamey Johnson, Norah Jones, Tom Jones, Miranda Lambert, Lyle Lovett, The Lumineers, Ziggy Marley, Lukas Nelson, Particle Kid (Micah Nelson), Margo Price with Nathaniel Rateliff, Sturgill Simpson, Chris Stapleton, George Strait, Stephen Stills with Neil Young, Billy Strings and Bobby Weir. Presenters introducing the artists Saturday included Hawke, Jennifer Garner, Helen Mirren and Owen Wilson.
On tap exclusively for Sunday: The Avett Brothers, Buddy Cannon, Randy Crowell, Sheryl Crow, Emmylou Harris, Booker T. Jones, Dave Matthews, Lily Meola, Wayne Payne, Orville Peck and Allison Russell, along with additional presenters Chelsea Handler, Woody Harrelson and Gabriel Iglesas.
All came to celebrate the long, rich, triumphant life of Nelson, one of the most acclaimed songwriters and singers of his age, and an accomplished actor, author and activist.
Nelson’s friends came to mine a motherlode of remarkable songs. According to BMI, Nelson has registered nearly 450 works since becoming a member of the performing rights organization in the 1950s. Still a vital, creative force, he won the 2023 Grammy Award in February for best country album for A Beautiful Time and last month released a collection of the songs of Harlan Howard, I Don’t Know A Thing About Love. It is his 150th album, according to Texas Monthly.
Led by musical director Don Was on bass, the night’s stellar band included Nelson’s longtime sideman Mickey Raphael on harmonica, keyboardist Benmont Tench, guitarists Audley Freed and Tom Bukovac, Gabe Witcher on violin, Greg Leisz on pedal steel guitar, and backup singers Alfreda McCrary, Ann McCrary and Regina McCrary. If one member of this band deserves a shout-out it is Raphael, whose harp was a constant, sweet sonic thread throughout the night.
Produced by Blackbird Presents, Live Nation and Hewitt Silva, the event’s executive producers are Nelson’s longtime manager Mark Rothbaum, Blackbird’s Keith Wortman, promoter Bill Silva, film director and producer Brian Smith and Nelson’s longtime representatives, Creative Artists Agency.
Rothman says plans for this event began a year ago and the decision to spread the celebration over two nights not only recognized the depth of talent involved but also Nelson’s long-celebrated double birthday in April.
“I was born before midnight on the 29th,” Nelson told listeners of his SiriusXM radio show in 2018, “but it didn’t get registered in the county courthouse [in his hometown of Abbott, Texas] until the next day. So it went out officially as the 30th. So I just do both days.”
On Saturday, Strings kicked off the birthday party with “Whiskey River,” which was written in 1972 by Johnny Bush but has been Nelson’s signature show-opener for years. Crockett followed with “The Party’s Over,” which Nelson recorded in 1967, and later became a staple for Monday Night Football host Don Meredith whenever a football match headed for a blowout. Nelson’s son Micah, who performs as Particle Kid, was joined by Lanois on pedal steel, for a dreamy and spooky version of “The Ghost” from a 1967 album produced by Chet Atkins. The song was a reminder of how rich Nelson’s repertoire was even in the Nashville years he was considered a failure as a recording artist.
“Willie is a spirit guide,” said Brickell as she took the stage with Sexton for beautiful harmonies on “Remember Me (When the Candle Lights Are Gleaming),” which Nelson recorded on his landmark 1975 album Red Headed Stranger. That spirit side of Nelson — call it zen — was evident in his writing early on, in songs like “Hello Walls,” a No. 1 Hot Country Songs hit for Faron Young. “I’ve always thought of it as the perfect song,” said Lovett as he sang that classic.
“Willie’s musical world is vaa-hst,” said presenter and famed British actress Helen Mirren. Echoing Brickell’s comment, Mirren said, “He simply follows the spirit, whenever the spirit leads.”
Nelson’s generous spirit in 1985 led him to create Farm Aid, the organization which has advocated on behalf of America’s family farmers with its annual benefit concert for nearly four decades. Price, now a member of the Farm Aid board, was joined by Farm Aid mainstay Rateliff, to duet on “I Can Get Off On You,” which Nelson co-wrote and recorded with Waylon Jennings in 1978.
Beck’s rendition of “Hands on the Wheel,” from Red Headed Stranger, was a measured, intense, fist-clenched performance. Jones played the piano romp “Down Yonder” in memory of Nelson’s younger sister and piano player Bobbie, who died in March 2022. She then sang “Funny How The Time Slips,” with the kind of off-the-beat vocals which Nelson has perfected. Former Allman Brothers guitarist Warren Haynes played that band’s “Midnight Rider,” which Nelson contributed to the soundtrack of the 1979 film The Electric Horseman.
Nelson in 1985 teamed up with three lifelong friends, Waylon Jennings, Johnny Cash and Kris Kristofferson, and the four were later collectively billed as The Highwaymen. Introduced by Hawkes as “the first daughter of The Highwaymen,” Rosanne Cash came onstage with Kristofferson to sing his classic “Lovin’ Her Was Easier.” Cash caressed the neck of the 86-year-old Kristofferson, who embraced her in return, in one of the night’s most moving moments.
Lukas Nelson channeled his father’s love of the great jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt with his solo on “Angel Flying Too Close to the Ground.” Bridges sang “Nightlife,” accompanied by Clark, who then honored another great Texan by scorching through Stevie Ray Vaughan’s “Flooding Down in Texas.” Jack Johnson credited two of Nelson’s favorite pastimes, smoking marijuana and playing poker, singing his lyric “Willie got me stoned and took all my money.”
Tom Jones, acknowledging Nelson’s milestone birthday, quipped, “I’m only 83 myself so I have a lot to look forward to,” then dug deep into the singer’s catalog for “Opportunity to Cry” from the early ’60s.
In a night filled with non-stop memorable moments, Jamey Johnson’s song choice stood out as he sang Billy Joe Shaver’s “Live Forever,” which Nelson recorded with Lucinda Williams last year for a Shaver tribute album. Johnson sang: “Nobody here will ever find me/ but I will always be around/ just like the songs I leave behind me / I’m going to live forever now.”
The Chicks turned “Bloody Mary Morning” into a double-tempo, fiddle-fired rave up. The Lumineers sang Leon Russell’s “A Song for You” — which Russell and Ray Charles sang with Nelson at his 70th birthday concert in New York in April 2003. Rateliff returned to the stage for Steve Goodman’s exuberant “City of New Orleans,” which Nelson covered back in 1984.
Bedecked in red-fringed sleeves on dark blue sparkling dress, Lambert elicited cheers as she declared she had come to honor Willie Nelson “the cowboy,” then raised the temperature of the chilly Los Angeles night with her version of “Mammas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys.”
The back-to-back stars continued as Stapleton chose two songs from Nelson’s 1982 album Always on My Mind, the title track and “Last Thing I Needed First Thing This Morning,” which Stapleton later covered on his own 2017 album From a Room: Volume 1.
For the second time in a week, following their April 22 concert at the Greek Theater to benefit Autism Speaks, Neil Young reunited with Stephen Stills and aptly offered “Long May You Run,” recorded by the Stills-Young Band in 1976, as their gift to Nelson. Stills took lead vocals on the Buffalo Springfield classic “For What It’s Worth.”
The placement of three stools at center stage — for Nelson and his sons — signaled the arrival of the guest of honor. Young and Nelson revived their 1985 collaboration “Are There Any More Real Cowboys.” Then, as if to answer that question, George Strait took the stage and the two country superstars parried on Strait’s 2019 song “Sing One With Willie.”
Norah Jones earlier in the evening had called Nelson “genre-less,” crediting his ability to create community and connections across the scope of American music. That was wonderfully clear as Snoop Dogg and Nelson sat alongside each other to sing “Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die.”
“Happy Birthday to me!” shouted a delighted Nelson as the show came to a close with “On The Road Again” and his traditional finale of “Will the Circle Be Unbroken” and “I’ll Fly Away,” joined by the evening’s entire ensemble. Hawke stepped forth to give what must have been scripted show-closing remarks. But Nelson has never followed anyone’s script and instead closed the night with the self-deprecating humor of Mac Davis’ “It’s Hard to be Humble.”
Flanking the Hollywood Bowl stage was the logo designed for this event. It showed Nelson, in silhouette, guitar over his back, upon his horse and riding into the sunset. It’s hard to imagine that sunset will come any time soon.
Additional reporting by Melinda Newman