When Are We Allowed to Get Excited About Live Music Again?
We know, we know. Everything is cancelled. Little honky-tonk shows, big amphitheater shows, massive arena-sized concerts and all the country music festivals that show up during festival season.
It's been almost eight months since I've seen a live show -- Ryan Hurd at the Cannery Ballroom in Nashville -- and none of us had any idea that the loss of live music would last this long. I mean, maybe the CDC knew. But the rest of the world, country fans included, were probably hoping that by late summer, the pandemic would be over and we'd be back in crowded rooms, elbow-to-elbow with strangers, soaking up every song and loving every minute.
And while we've come to understand and sort of accept the new normal, wouldn't it be nice to pencil some live country music on your 2021 calendar? And hold on to the hope that by this time next year, we'll all be back to the old normal and our concert funds will have all been depleted?
So instead of a list of the concerts that you've had to begrudgingly cross off your schedule, here is what your 2021* could potentially look like if you say yes to all the things:
We will be updating this list as new dates and artists are added.
January 8
Cody Johnson
Raising Canes River Center in Baton Rouge, LA
February 12
Randy Rogers Band and Wade Bowen
Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, TN
March 12-14
C2C Country to Country
Venues in Glasgow, Dublin and London
March 17
Miranda Lambert
ilani Casino Resort in Ridgefield, WA
March 19-21
Dierks Bentley, Eric Church, Kane Brown
Country Thunder in Kissimmee, FL
April 8-11
Dustin Lynch, Morgan Wallen, Eric Church, Luke Combs
Country Thunder in Florence, AZ
April 21
Chris Stapleton's U.S. tour kick off
Toledo, OH
April 27-29
Live in the Vineyard Goes Country
Napa Valley, CA
April 23-25
Stagecoach Festival
Empire Polo Club in Riverside, CA
April 30
Maren Morris' U.S. tour kick off
Ameris Bank Amphitheatre in Alpharetta, GA
May 1
Kenny Chesney's U.S. tour kick off
Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, FL
May 30
Luke Bryan's U.S. tour kick off
Stambaugh Stadium in Younsgtown, OH
June 5
Lee Brice
Brickie Bowl in Hobart, IN
June 10-13
Luke Combs, Eric Church, Darius Rucker
Carolina Country Music Fest in Myrtle Beach, SC
June 11-13
Old Dominion, Kane Brown, Morgan Wallen
Country Thunder in Forest City, IA
July 15-18
Morgan Wallen and Kane Brown
Country Thunder in Twin Lakes, WI
July 16-18
Luke Combs, Thomas Rhett, Jason Aldean
Faster Horses in Brooklyn, MI
July 23
Carrie Underwood
Twin Cities Summer Jam in Shakopee, MN
July 30-August 1
Tim McGraw, Dierks Bentley, Thomas Rhett
Watershed Festival in Quincy, WA
August 08
Sam Hunt, Eric Church, Dan + Shay
Boots and Hearts Festival in Oro-Medonte, ON
September 12
Clint Black
Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, TN
October 10
Mitchell Tenpenny
Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, TN
November 12-14
Luke Bryan, Miranda Lambert, Tim McGraw
Tortuga Music Festival in Fort Lauderdale, FL
* This list does not include scheduled tour stops for the remainder of 2020, which may or may not be postponed.