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Stagecoach 2023: Kane Brown, Bryan Adams and Nelly close out Day 2

April 30, 2023

The second day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival on Saturday, April 29 was a little less crowded than the first day during the early and even mid-afternoon.

It could’ve been the ongoing heatwave lingering over the Coachella Valley — or the hard partying the evening before during headliner Luke Bryan — that caused festivalgoers to stroll in a little later, but they still turned up for the party atmosphere.

Fans beat the heat by kicking back in air-conditioned branded activations and spots like the Honky Tonk and Shein Saloon and sipped on cold beer and lemonade. Some made the long trek across the Empire Polo Club grounds to check out Mane Stage performer Niko Moon over at Guy Fieri’s Stagecoach Smokehouse. Moon and Fieri were making an enormous mac and cheeseburger.

Nikki Lane performs on the Palomino Stage during the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, April 29, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Cappuccio Maher, Contributing Photographer)

Nelly performs on the Palomino Stage during the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, April 29, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Cappuccio Maher, Contributing Photographer)

Fans watch as Nelly performs on the Palomino Stage during the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, April 29, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Cappuccio Maher, Contributing Photographer)

Kane Brown performs on the Mane Stage as he closes the second day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, Apr. 29, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

Members of Old Dominon perform on the Mane Stage on the second day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, Apr. 29, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

Gabby Barrett performs on the Mane Stage on the second day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, Apr. 29, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

Old Dominion lead vocalist Matthew Ramsey performs on the Mane Stage on the second day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, Apr. 29, 2023. Ramsey fractured his pelvis in three places during an ATV accident. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

Country artist Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives perform on the Palomino Stage on the second day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, Apr. 29, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

Country artist Niko Moon, right, holds a 6 pound hamburger made from bison and elk meat as TV personality Guy Fieri, left, looks on in the Smokehouse on the second day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, Apr. 29, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

Country artist Marty Stuart, center, and His Fabulous Superlatives perform on the Palomino Stage on the second day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, Apr. 29, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

Mary Chapin Carpenter performs on the Palomino Stage during the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, April 29, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Cappuccio Maher, Contributing Photographer)

Country artist Niko Moon, left, speaks with Guy Fieri, right, in the Smokehouse on the second day of the Stagecoach Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio on Saturday, Apr. 29, 2023. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)

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ON THE MANE

Later in the day, Moon’s Mane Stage set reflected those feel-good vibes and got the audience up and out of their lawn chairs in the heat to dance, some even hoping up on the nearby bales of hay to sway along. He had fans singing along to songs like “Good Time,” “All That We Need” and “Heaven Has a Bar.”

Saturday headliner Kane Brown began 10 minutes later than scheduled and the set had a 90-second countdown before he kicked off his performance with an immediate burst of pyrotechnics that caused the crowd to roar back and wave their cowboy hats in the air. Fans danced and sang along to the songs “Like I Love Country Music,” “Used to Love You Sober” and “Heaven.” Near the end of his set, he was joined by his wife Katelyn Jae for the couple’s duet, “Thank God.” Brown’s set ended with a band and lots of fireworks.

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“We’ve been waiting years to be back here and play with you guys,” Matthew Ramsey of Old Dominion said as the band took the Mane Stage just before Brown.

Performing at the Mane Stage isn’t new for the five-piece group since they played in the same spot in 2019 and made their Stagecoach debut in 2016. The band kept the crowd up and dancing as they kicked off with hits “Make It Sweet” and “No Hard Feelings.” But the most amusing part of the night wasn’t necessarily the Dominion hits but the covers, pulling out “As It Was” by Harry Styles.

Former “American Idol” contestant Gabby Barrett took the Mane Stage right as the sun finally set. For many, she’s known as one of the leading voices of Gen-Z country, and it was clear why during her 45-minute set. She made sure to play her hit “I Hope,” to which fans, especially the ladies, sang their hearts out to the breakup anthem. Her set was a mix bag of songs off her debut 2020 album “Goldmine” and covers like Lady A’s “Need You Now” and Journey’s Don’t Stop Believin.’”

CLASSICS IN THE PALOMINO

Keb’ Mo’ brought the rhythm and blues during his afternoon set in the Palomino. Keb’ Mo’s career stretches back to the late ‘70s, having 19 full-length records under his belt. The five-time Grammy award-winning artist flipped through his most beloved tracks, and the small but eager crowd relished every second of it. There wasn’t much talking, other than occasional nods and waves, but the music supplied by Mo’ and his band were more than enough as he went through “Shave Yo Legs,” “I Remember You,” “Life Is Beautiful,” and two classics, “Am I Wrong” and “Perpetual Blues Machine.”

Singer-songwriter Nikki Lane was charming as ever. The performer and curator of the festival’s Stage Stop Marketplace and Horseshoe Stage, stunned in her country-meets-rock-and-roll inspired outfit, her freshly dyed blonde and wavy locks topped by a blue cowboy hat with her name boldly bedazzled in rhinestones.

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She rocked thorough songs off her latest album, the title track, “Denim & Diamonds,” dedicated to all the hardworking ladies in the audience.

She bounced around on her guitar to “First High” and got down with the crowd, grooving her body along to “Black Widow.” If someone could give her a long enough break from working behind-the-scenes at the festival, Lane is more than ready for a nice spot on the Mane Stage.

Mary Chapin Carpenter kicked off her set in the Palomino with a wide smile and back-to-back hits, 1992’s “Passionate Kisses” and 1994’s “Shut Up and Kiss Me,” her sizable crowd happily singing along to the choruses.

Her speaking voice was soft and sweet as she addressed her fans: “Hello, Stagecoach,” she said. “We’re so happy to be here … it’s not that hot.” Clearly she was joking, because just outside the shaded stage area, the sun was still mercilessly beating down on the festival grounds. The set was filled with her classic ’90s country music and fans of different generations sang all of the lyrics and danced along.

“Down at the Twist and Shout” was a song she prefaced by acknowledging she could hear the sing-a-longs. “So great hearing you all sing along,” she said sincerely. “You’re so beautiful.”

She also played “He Thinks He’ll Keep Her” and “I Feel Lucky” with a lot of sass. She slipped in a new offering, too, adding “Secret Keepers” from her 2020 album, “The Dirt and the Stars.” It fit well in her set of well-crafted songs, all of which she delivered passionately as she pounded away on her well-worn acoustic guitar.

Marty Stuart & His Fabulous Superlatives are a Stagecoach staple. They also easily won Stagecoach’s best dressed trophy. The crew came out in coordinating outfits that included bright blue colors on their jackets and shirts — minus drummer Harry Stinson’s getup, which was red — with bold flower embroidery and lots of rhinestones.

The band got people rockin’ straight away with “Burn the Woodpile Down,” while Stuart flipped around his signature silver hair and jammed on his guitar. The audience cheered as the song came to a close and he let out a big ‘ol “Thank you, goodnight!”

But the band had a lot more up its sleeve, including a pair of new songs — “Sitting Alone” and “Space” — off their forthcoming album, “Altitude,” which is due out on May 19. Stuart described the album as “cosmic country” and it’s exactly that, sort of twangy and out of this world, with a ‘60s psychedelic rock vibe.

Canadian singer-songwriter Bryan Adams, who was originally scheduled to perform at Stagecoach in 2020, closed out the Palomino on Saturday night with crowd that spilled far outside of the massive tent. People in the back were camped out as far as the eye could see, some chilling in their lawn chairs as far back as the food stands.

Fans cheered and danced to Adams’ fiery performance, which was full of windy guitar solos and ballads — like “(Everything I Do) I Do It For You” — that brought some fans to tears. He had a commanding stage presence, resonating with the crowd throughout the set. One of the most notable moments was when fans sang along to “Shine a Light,” with their phone flashlights lighting up the otherwise dark stage area. He also played “Somebody,” “Summer of ’69” and “Cuts Like Knife.”

THE AFTER-PARTY

Los Angeles-based DJ Dillon Francis kept the fans raving as he closed down the Honk Tonk. The line to get in was brutal, as it took some folks more than 20 minutes just to get in the door. But once the wait was over, there was a raging party inside. Francis played everything from a few remixed songs by Rihanna including “Don’t Stop The Music” and “Only Girl (In The World)” to country classics. Other tracks included house remixes of Taylor Swift’s “Love Story” and Tame Impala’s “Let It Happen.”

As Kane Brown wrapped up his set, festivalgoers made their way to Nelly’s Late Night in Palomino after-party which resulted in a tightly-packed tent and a massive overflow of guests just trying to catch a glimpse of the rapper. As is typical with the more popular acts, getting through the crowd was nearly impossible, but once people settled in, they danced, jumped around and sang along, shoulder to shoulder, with others to Nelly’s popular tunes including “Hot in Herre,” “Ride Wit Me” and “E.I.”

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Orange County Register