‘Play ball baby’: Country music stars play softball for charity
Some of the stars raising money for Folds of Honor include Riley Green, Jordan Davis, Priscilla Block, Chase Rice, Warren Zeiders and Gavin Adcock.
Riley Green knew he was walking into risky territory by name-dropping the Crimson Tide in a Bridgestone Arena full of Vols fans.
“I’ll tell you what, I’m playing this song all over the country and I’ve only done this one other time, but I’m going to do it tonight because y’all are a good crowd,” the 37-year-old country crooner said after performing his song “Hell of a Way to Go.” In it, he sings, “Or maybe on a fifty-yard line / Watchin’ Alabama whoop up on Tennessee.”
Boos playfully rippled through roughly two-thirds of the arena.
“The year I wrote this song, Tennessee beat Alabama for the first time in like 40 years,” he said. “So if you promise not to video it, I’ll change the words this one time.”
Of course cell phones shot into the air as Green delivered the modified lyric: “Maybe on a fifty-yard line / Alabama’s getting the hell kicked out of them by Tennessee.”
Cheers and laughs cascaded down from the nosebleeds and the Duckman smiled.
“That one hurt,” he admitted.
Welcome to the Duck Club
The 6-foot-4 headliner opened the show with his signature duck call. Behind him, bottles of Duck Club Bourbon lined shelves. A table set at center stage included a display of the brand. He took a shot. His band took a shot.
A hunting lodge motif was woven throughout the set. Antlers framed the backdrop panels. A circular chandelier of deer antlers hung overhead. The staging doubled as a visual extension of Green’s brand, blending his outdoorsman persona with the polish of arena-scale production.
Since the roster split between HYBE America, which launched the Blue Highway label, and Big Machine Label Group, Green has emerged as a cornerstone artist for Big Machine.
It’s easy to see why with a sold-out arena show full of Duck Club hats, hunting sweaters, camo shirts, short skirts, caramel-colored cowboy boots and bedazzled cowboy heels.
The crowd was just as much a part of the show. The reactions shifted with the setlist, from rowdy singalongs to quieter, more intimate moments.
Fans pumped their fists in the air during “Change My Mind.” As Green slowed the tempo for “Make It Rain,” a couple made out in Section 105. During “Jesus Saves,” a woman on the floor unfolded her cardboard sign that spelled out the song’s title. The fans around her turned on their cell phone lights hoping to get the star’s attention. After “You Look Like You Love Me,” pockets of the pit chanted “Ella” for Ella Langley, who originally sang the duet.
But Langley wasn’t going to show up. She had a Tuscaloosa, Alabama concert with Morgan Wallen.
‘Cowboy As It Gets’
Green brought out a steady stream of collaborators during his “Cowboy As It Gets” tour including Jamey Johnson, Carly Pearce and his three openers — Mackenzie Carpenter, Justin Moore and Drake White — before closing with a full-cast cover of Alabama’s “Dixieland Delight.”
“You never know who’s going to show up,” he teased before welcoming Johnson to the stage for “Where Corn Don’t Grow” and “In Color.”
“My favorite artist in country music growing up and to this day is this man right here, Mr. Jamey Johnson,” he said. “The biggest influence on my career and watching him do what he’s done all these years, writing great songs and staying true to himself.”
The chorus of “In Color” would have drawn the biggest singalong, if not for the Toby Keith covers of “Should’ve Been a Cowboy” and “Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue,” especially when Green let the moment linger before delivering the “’cause we’ll put a boot in your” line.
For the encore, he tweaked a lyric to “I Wish Grandpas Never Died” to sum up the night: “I wish Bridgestone Arena didn’t have no closing time and I wish grandpas never die.”
Riley Green at Bridgestone Arena Setlist:
- “Different ‘Round Here”
- “Damn Good Day to Leave”
- “If It Wasn’t For Trucks”
- “Where Corn Don’t Grow” feat. Jamey Johnson
- “In Color” (Jamey Johnson cover) feat. Jamey Johnson
- “Georgia Time”
- “Hell Of A Way To Go” feat. Drake White
- “Rather Be”
- “When She Comes Home Tonight”
- “If I Don’t Leave I’m Gonna Stay” feat. Carly Pearce
- “Make it Rain”
- “Change My Mind”
- “Should’ve Been a Cowboy” (Toby Keith cover) feat. Justin Moore
- “Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue” (Toby Keith cover) feat. Justin Moore
- “Jesus Saves”
- “My Way”
- “Don’t Mind if I Do” feat. Mackenzie Carpenter
- “There Was This Girl”
- “You Look Like You Love Me”
- “I Wish Grandpas Never Died”
- “Bury Me in Dixie” / “Dixieland Delight” (Alabama cover) feat. Carpenter, Moore and White
Bryan West is a music reporter at The Tennessean, part of the USA TODAY Network. Follow him on Instagram, TikTok and X as @BryanWestTV.
