I may not have been raised in the south - heck, I wasn't even raised in the USA! - but I should have been. The music, the lifestyle, the men. I am country girl, through and through. That's why it should come as no surprise that I travelled over 2,230km to see Blake Shelton's Well Lit & Amplified tour. Not only was the king of my country world the headlining act, Justin Moore - who I've seen once before - was opening. Those two men made it a must-see!
It started with concert tickets to the concert in Spokane, WA on March 8th, 2012. From Revelstoke, BC I drove to Calgary, AB to pick up my sister. On the 7th, we drove - for our first time - to Spokane, WA. We entered the US through Idaho. In one day we had covered two provinces and two states.
All the travelling had earned us a peaceful night in our hotel. The next morning we did some shopping, and then returned to our hotel to make our t-shirts for that night. My sister went with a Blake Shelton classic, "It's All About Tonight" with camouflage letter. While I opted for a twist on my all-time favorite country song, Austin by Blake Shelton.
With our shirts complete it was time to head to the venue. I had booked a hotel that had described itself as being across the street from the Spokane Arena - it lied. Before leaving the hotel room, I double checked with Google Maps - it lied. My sister and I proceeded to wander around the streets, wasting time. Nothing flusters me more than being later - or what I perceive as late - for any sort of event. In a huff, we hurried back to the hotel and called a cab. After waiting twenty minutes for a cab that never came, we decided to risk it and jumped in our car. My sister used her best map reading skills to get us to the arena. We picked the nearest parking spot, jumped out of the car and ran into the venue. We made it onto the floor as the lights were dimming.
Since we were so late getting to Spokane Arena, I wasn't able to do my preferred method of purchasing my merchandise before the concert. The first opening act was Dia Frmapton. Blake had coached Dia on the first season of The Voice. She has a unique sound, and is as cute as button! After snapping a few photos to get the settings right on my camera, we decided to get a snack and our merchandise during Dia's set so that we wouldn't risk missing Justin Moore.
Justin Moore is as redneck as they come, but that boy can sing! He opened his set with a song off of his new album called Guns. Yes, it is about guns. It's not my favorite song of his, but with his performance it's hard to care what he is singing - as long as he is singing.
He sang How I Got To Be This Way next. That is the song that made me fall in love with Mr. Moore. Back in 2010, my sister and I saw him open for Brad Paisley. We knew then and there that he would be one of our favorites moving forward. After How I Got To Be This Way, he sang My Kind of Woman.
Next up, just prove how country he is, he sang If You Don't Like My Twang. He is one of the twangiest fellas I listen to, and I love every minute of his southern drawl. He then sang his new single, Like There's No Tomorrow, and then showed off just how powerful his voice is with a cover of With A Little Help From My Friends.
If Heaven Wasn't So Far Away was next. Justin dedicated the song to Miranda and Blake who had been going through a tough time dealing with the loss of loved ones. This song is so beautiful, and meaning is so powerful. It's easily a favorite of mine.
Bait A Hook and Hank It were next. My sister and I love to belt these two songs out while were driving, so we were more than ready to sing'em along with Mr. Moore. Afterwards, Justin Moore sang Small Town USA which is always a crowd favorite.
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