By Joe Scrizzi

 

WoW-O-WoW…… It was quite the evening tonight at the Steel Stage at Musikfest!

In my opinion there were 2 Blockbuster Acts sharing the same stage.

Opening for Kelsea Ballerini was “Girl Named Tom“,  some may recognize this group, as they were the Winners of The Voice 2022 this year. The band is only 3 years old. The Family Trio (Bekah, Joshua and Caleb) hail from a small town in Ohio, population less than 500 (well over 500 people at tonight’s show!).

Each sibling had a unique voice trait, combined together they performed in perfect harmony.

Girl Named Tom opened with California, Bekah belted out lyrics that caught the attention of everyone in attendance!

This is a Band to keep your eye on, hope they get invited back, would love to see them perform again at a local venue!

After a short break the stage went dark and the band filtered out and into position….you knew what was about to happen…..Kelsea was about to appear! Lights, Smoke and Sound filled the arena.

She opened with “Miss Me More” and everyone was on their feet singing and dancing along.

Few songs in I recognized “Dibs” that was released in 2015, easy going tune, people were still standing and swaying!

I especially liked every few songs, she would stop and talk with the audience.

Tonight marked the last Headline Show before they go on Tour!

She followed with “Half of My Hometown” and “I Quit Drinking”, every song played tonight, was paired with an excellent light show on the screen behind. Each told their own story.

New Song Release: Love is a Cowboy, fans cheered loud for it to be played!

Lights dimmed a bit, Kelsea picked up the guitar and played HeartFirst her Official Music Video.

Kelsea took a few minutes and talked about being the ultimate fan-girl when she was young and growing up, which led into a Fleetwood Mac Songs: Dreams.

Something caught her eye in the 4th row in front of the stage, a young girl was holding up a sign.

The crowd joined Kelsea in singing Happy Birthday to Kaleigh who turned 11 on 8/11 at 11:11pm tonight….sounds like a good year to me!

As I looked around the crowd on both sides, in front and behind me this was an all age concert. Caught a young girl to my left standing on the seat dancing to and fro’ to every song!

Another 2015 Release: Peter Pan had a peaceful video in the back, where the song married well with the graphics. Full Moon rose and fell through the clouds on the screen, which also coincides with tonight’s Full Sturgeon Moon, great selection to play.

Hole in a Bottle released in 2020, got the Fans singing word-for-word and clapping along!

The evening was coming to an end when she returned to sing 2 more songs for the Encore:

Homecoming Queen

This Feeling (ChainSmokers).

Final Thoughts:

I’ve been reviewing country concerts for roughly 5 years now and it is great to see the Artists taking the time to talk to Audiences in between songs.

At times I listen between the lyrics (sounds like a song title ), light banter between band members and siblings, brings smiles & laughs, it shows in their performances and how they are connected as a Family.

Huge Thanks to Girl Named Tom & Kelsea Ballerini for an Amazing Show that I will Remember in Years to Come!