12 concerts during NFR in Las Vegas: Shaboozey, George Strait, Garth Brooks, more | National Finals Rodeo | sport

Hit As much of a National Finals Rodeo staple as a bull rider’s sore ribs.

“King of Country Music” George Strait has performed at the NFR nearly every year since 2016 and regularly holds court at marquee professional rodeo events.

With 60 No. 1 hits, Strait has more chart-toppers than any other artist in any genre. His appeal is rooted in his role as a true country believer who defends the mores of traditional honky-tonk with Pentecostal zeal. He’s an unabashed romantic whose songs are mostly about the joys of honky-tonk women and the thrill of hitting the streets and chasing the sun like it owes him money.

His extensive back catalog is filled with earthy, windswept, dust-in-the-throat Americana. It’s the sound of wanderlust, the fascination for wide open spaces and all the possibilities that endless stretches of highway bring with them. Despite his traditionalist leanings, Strait is also the forefather of the elegant nouveau country that has dominated the airwaves since the early 1990s.

He bridges the gap between the raw, thick-skinned twang of the ’70s and the big-sounding, hyper-produced country-pop of today. In fact, it was Strait who gave 17-year-old Taylor Swift one of her first big breaks by taking her as an opening act on his 2006 tour.

“This time last year I was sitting at a desk in high school,” she gushed at the MGM Grand Garden in February of this year.

When he returns to town on Saturday, Strait will headline Allegiant Stadium for the first time, bringing with him Chris Stapleton and Little Big Town. It’s his biggest Vegas show yet.

Here are 11 other notable concerts during the NFR:

Garth Brooks

Colosseum at Caesars Palace, December 5, 7, 8, 12 and 14

The Oak Ridge Boys, Billy Joel, Bob Seger, Randy Travis, Lady Gaga, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Marvin Gaye – you never know where Garth Brooks will turn for covers during his performances in Las Vegas. You just know there will be plenty of them, in addition to his many fan-favorite songs.

Midland and Tanya Tucker

The Theater at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas, December 6th

The outlaw country movement of the 1970s lacked many things: respect for the mores of Nashville at the time, acceptance of the traditional boundaries of the genre and, above all, of women. Tanya Tucker changed that. Although she initially rose to fame as a squeaky-clean teenage singer, she refined her sound with a rock edge and exuded the confidence and determination of a woman in charge. At this year’s NFR, she teams up with neo-traditional country favorites Midland.

Brad Paisley

Encore Theater at Wynn Las Vegas, December 6-8

A top-notch guitarist with a wry sense of humor, Brad Paisley has long been a witty craftsman like no other in Nashville. But on his latest album, the upcoming “Son of the Mountains,” Paisley takes a more sobering turn with the single “Same Here,” a stirring ballad inspired by the war in Ukraine and featuring audio recordings of the country’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky. contains.

Cody Jinks

Dolby Live at Park MGM, December 6th and 7th

Cody Jinks describes himself as a “devil with a tongue of fire and a belly full of gas” and has his roots firmly in the red dirt of country traditionalism. But he started his music career playing in metal bands and his music is still full of punk rock energy and the make-my-own-rules ethos.

Shania Twain

PH Live at Planet Hollywood Resort, December 6th, 7th, 11th, 13th and 14th

If Strait is the country king, Shania Twain remains its queen, having achieved the rare musical success the former did not achieve: Twain’s 1997 blockbuster album Come on Over is considered to have sold more than 40 million copies as the best-selling country album of all time copies.

Thomas Rhett

BleauLive Theater at Fontainebleau Las Vegas, December 6th, 7th, 13th and 14th

“It Goes Like This”: Thomas Rhett has not only written 20 number 1 country hits for himself, but also singles for the likes of Jason Aldean, Florida George Line, LoCash and others. We bet that with this success he can “die a happy man.”

Shaboozey

The Theater at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas, December 11th

When Beyonce went on a country tour this year for her album Cowboy Carter, she did so with the help of rapper-singer Shaboozey, with whom she collaborated on two tracks. Since then, he’s become a star in his own right: Shaboozey’s hit country/hip-hop hybrid “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” ranks as the longest-running No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2024.

Pam Tillis and Lorrie Morgan

The Showroom at Golden Nugget, December 9th

On their ongoing tour, aptly titled “Grits and Glamour,” veteran country divas Pam Tillis and Lorrie Morgan trade songs, stories and the occasional playful aside. The pair have a combined 28 top 10 hits, 12 number one songs and 18 million records sold.

Cody Johnson

MGM Grand Garden, December 12th and 13th

At this year’s People’s Choice Country Music Awards, singer-songwriter Cody Johnson won Storyteller Song of the Year for his heartbreaking hit “Dirt Cheap,” and rightly so – the tune tells the story of an elderly farmer who refuses , selling his song property to a railroad company because of the memories it contained. If this doesn’t leave you a little confused, it’s better to get checked for a tear duct malfunction.

Charley Crockett

The Theater at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas, December 14th

Indebted to R&B icons like Curtis Mayfield and Nina Simone as well as country legends like George Jones and Hank Williams, Charley Crockett’s catalog is as bluesy and soulful as it is roots- and Americana-influenced.

Lainey Wilson

MGM Grand Garden, December 14th

Her latest album is titled “Whirlwind,” and there’s some truth in the promotion for Lainey Wilson, whose life has been exactly the same over the past year: In addition to winning the Grammy for Best Country Album in February for her breakthrough album “Bell “Bottom Country” won her four trophies at the Academy of Country Music Awards last year, including Female Artist of the Year. After completing four shows at The Theater at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas during last year’s NFR, she’s graduating to an arena this year as her career and the venues she headlines expand at the same time.

Contact Jason Bracelin at [email protected] or 702-383-0476. Follow @jbracelin76 on Instagram.