For her first headlining arena show, Lainey Wilson brought the house down at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, CT.
It may be important to note that Mohegan Sun isn’t a huge arena – it only has 10,000 seats – but it’s definitely important to note that the show was completely sold out and almost every single seat was filled.
Lainey Wilson has been supporting Luke Combs on his tour for the first half of this year, while the middle part of the summer has been reserved for her own headlining shows. At the end of the summer and into the fall, Lainey will embark on various shows supporting the likes of Eric Church, HARDY, and Garth Brooks.
But this was her first headlining arena show supporting her 2022 album Bell Bottom Country, and it was a pretty damn good start.
Her two openers were Wyatt McCubbin and Dylan Marlowe, the latter of which gained popularity after sharing a country-fied rewrite of Olivia Rodrigo’s hit “driver’s license.” Both McCubbin and Marlowe played for about forty minutes each before Lainey hit the stage.
She opened with “Hold My Halo,” which is an upbeat song about needing to let loose after working hard and trying to keep everyone happy, a feeling we can all resonate with in one way or another. In keeping momentum, she followed it with “Hillbilly Hippie,” and “Road Runner,” which is one of my personal favorites.
In an ode to the wonderful Dolly Parton, she sang “W.W.D.D. (What Would Dolly Do?),” off of her 2021 album Sayin’ What I’m Thinkin’. Lainey has previously stated that she would love to do a duet with Dolly Parton and has referred to her as her “biggest inspiration.” So naturally, after Lainey discovered that she’d be recording a duet with Dolly Parton for the upcoming tribute album celebrating Naomi and Wynonna Judd, she “about passed out.”
The middle of her set was reserved for songs like “Smell Like Smoke,” which is the song her character “Abby” recently performed in season 5 of Paramount’s Yellowstone. She also performed the slower ballad, “Watermelon Moonshine,” which she just released the music video for in addition to a limited edition, specially designed 40 oz Stanley Tumbler.
In between songs, Lainey took time to interact with fans in the pit. Recognizing one fan from various other shows, she told the audience that she and the fan, “go way back!” She also recognized another fan from a show where the girl asked Lainey to sign her forehead in New York City. While she was laughing and holding the girl’s hand, she explained to the rest of the audience that she also had the girl sign her forehead in solidarity before she carried on performing.
She also took a moment towards the beginning of the show to grab a friendship bracelet that a young girl had made for her. Lainey even had the girl clasp the bracelet on her wrist before she continued on with the show. The ways in which she interacts with her audience clearly shows just how much she values and appreciates her fans.
Picking it back up, she put on an electrifying performance of “Grease.” The lyrics to the song floated across the screen behind her in eye-catching graphics while she danced across the stage.
And just when we thought the crowd couldn’t get more excited, she performed “What’s Up (What’s Going On)” a cover of the 4 Non Blondes classic that she also released on her 2022 album.
She saved her smash hit “Heart Like a Truck” for last, and I have to say, it’s been a long time since I’ve heard a crowd sing the lyrics to a song as loudly as they did that night.
Just when we thought she was done, she reappeared for an encore, where she sang “Those Boots (Deddy’s Song),” “Never Say Never,” and her 2021 hit “Things a Man Oughta Know.”
Overall, Lainey put on a wonderful show and she sounds identical to her records, which is something that is rare in this day and age of autotune and other voice enhancement software. I know that I will for sure be on the lookout for tickets the next time she comes to the area.
