After partying hard on Friday, Stagecoach Country Music Festival fans were a bit sluggish getting into the second day of the three-day fest on Saturday at the Empire Polo Club in Indio.
But the 97-degree weather, hangovers and some lobster-red sunburns weren’t going to put a damper on the good time.
People still turned out for early day sets by Shy Carter, who hopped down off the SiriusXM Spotlight Stage mid-performance to dance with fans who lined up in the front row as he sang his song “Hurry.” When the song ended, he realized there was no way for him to just hop back on the stage, so he spent the rest of his turn singing in the middle of the crowd.
While the music is great, the savory aroma of barbecue that could be smelled from out in the festival parking lot, lured guests over to Guy Fieri’s Stagecoach Smokehouse where pitmasters Kevin Bludso of Bludso’s Bar & Que in Los Angeles and Chris Schobel of Fat Daddy’s Smokehouse in Hawaii were serving up pork butt burnt ends after they roasted a whole hog for 15 hours on site. Fans lined up to get samples of the tender and perfectly salty meat with a side of Schobel’s signature cornbread.
Over in the Palomino, fans hung out in the shade and took in sets by Ian Noe, Molly Tuttle, Shenandoah and Zach Bryan while Caylee Hammack closed out the SiriusXM Spotlight Stage for the day by playing Tom Petty’s “Mary Jane’s Last Dance,” a song that was covered twice yesterday by Mane Stage artists Midland and Jordan Davis.
“I’m so mad at those boys for taking my song, but maybe you were too drunk to remember,” she quipped before playing the cover.
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Travis Denning kicked off the Mane Stage performances with songs like “Tank of Gas and a Radio Song” and “She’s On It.” Mitchell Tenpenny, who had his first set on the SiriusXM Spotlight Stage in 2019 cut short, was promoted to Mane Stage performer in 2022, but decided to play an earlier and more intimate acoustic set over at the Bud Light Seltzer Sessions Stage.
A lot of the activations give general admission passholders a glimpse of the VIP perks. If fans follow along on the official Stagecoach website and the social media accounts of several of the branded partners, performers are popping up all over the festival to meet and greet with fans whether for happy hours, intimate performances or signings.
Tenpenny was so close to the crowd, he could be heard chatting with fans in the front row, asking their names and encouraging them to call out songs for him to play. He ended up performing “Anything She Says,” “Elephant in the Room” and “Bucket List” before jetting off to prepare for his Mane Stage debut at 6:05 p.m.
The Stagecoach Country Music Festival continues on Saturday with performances by Carrie Underwood, Brothers Osborne, Lee Brice, Cody Jinks, Margo Price. It wraps up on Sunday with Luke Combs, The Black Crowes, Smokey Robinson, The Mavericks, Cody Johnson, Locash and more.