The Stagecoach Country Music Festival kicked off the first day of its 10th year with something that was more akin to its popular sister event the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival: big name guest stars who happened to also play at Coachella.
Among the people Sam Hunt brought out for his Friday evening Mane Stage set of country mixed with hip-hop and electronica were Snoop Dogg and G-Eazy. G-Eazy played both weekends of Coachella and Snoop showed up with Ice Cube on Weekend 1.
And Chris Young, who followed Hunt on the Mane Stage, brought out “The Voice” winner and Stagecoach 2015 performer Cassadee Pope for their hit duet “Think of You.”
After all of that, headliner Eric Church, who played the very first Stagecoach in 2007 with an afternoon set on the Mane Stage, something he reminded the audience of Friday night, didn’t match the starpower, but delivered a strong set of his latest and greatest.
Elsewhere during the evening, another return performer to Stagecoach, Emmylou Harris, played a transcendent set in the Palomino Tent that included “Sweetheart of the Rodeo,” a cover of Simon and Garfunkel’s “The Boxer” and ended with Neil Young’s “After the Goldrush.”
One of the standout performances criminally missed by those parked at the Mane Stage was the alt-country of Lucero, which was running so early that the Memphis band had time to add another song, appropriately titled “The Last Song.”
And Robert Earl Keen had a devoted following for his evening set.
On the Mane Stage, Drake White and the Big Fire ended their set with a cover song–a blast from the past of the mid-’90s with 4 Non Blondes’ “What’s Up?” So what was up with that? It reminded him of vacationing with his family.
Kristian Bush, of Sugarland, took a solo turn in the Mane Stage afternoon block as well, and played some new material and told us who he would book to headline Stagecoach.
Early in the day, Tigerman WOAH brought a mix of Motorhead, Americana and Tom Waits to the Mustang Stage, and even did a send-up to Prince with “Purple Rain” that a fellow team member compared to Cookie Monster giving a Prince tribute. It was pretty great.
But Stagecoach is more than just music–it’s a lifestyle.
Unlike Coachella, where very few vendors are allowed on the property, Stagecoach is swarming with goods, most of them adorned with the American flag in some fashion–whether it be the Wallet Buckle (a belt buckle that can double as a wallet), bejeweled boot covers or even a hand-carved sign, Old Glory was everywhere.
Stagecoach also attracts families with its Half-Pint Hootenanny, a children’s area that boasts a petting zoo with a miniature “Woolly Mammoth” donkey named Chewbacca. Seriously.
Lots of people were sharing those photos via social media. In fact, Stagecoach has picture frames and art pieces set up ready for the perfect social media snap.
Meanwhile, if you want to follow the action from home, Yahoo and Tumblr are streaming a number of performances.
And for everything that isn’t being streamed, follow our team of reporters, photographers and editors on the ground for live updates all weekend long.
