
(Orlando FL) Blake Shelton alongside fellow country supporting acts Neal McCoy, Dan + Shay, and The Band Perry, put on a country show concert infused with enough action and excitement to keep even non-country fans entertained at Amway Center.
With his band backing him, Neal McCoy performed a few of his own hits: 'The City Put The Country In Me', 'They're Playin' Our Song', and 'Wink'. However, during his set he also covered Michael Jackson's 'Man in the Mirror' which surprisingly prompted much of the Amway Center to sing along with him. McCoy's biggest accomplishment of the night though was serving as the emcee in between musical acts keeping the crowd extremely engaged and entertained throughout instrument set changes, and drum kit breakdowns. He poked fun at having the banner behind him reading as 'Dan + Shay' and had encouraged as many people as possible to take photos and post on social media in an effort to increase his following. He was actually very funny and had given the crowd someone on stage with whom they could personally relate. I hadn't seen anything like this in any other previous show of any other musical genre, and the addition of which was a very welcome feature for all as it drastically minimized any downtime or adrenaline crashes.
With his band backing him, Neal McCoy performed a few of his own hits: 'The City Put The Country In Me', 'They're Playin' Our Song', and 'Wink'. However, during his set he also covered Michael Jackson's 'Man in the Mirror' which surprisingly prompted much of the Amway Center to sing along with him. McCoy's biggest accomplishment of the night though was serving as the emcee in between musical acts keeping the crowd extremely engaged and entertained throughout instrument set changes, and drum kit breakdowns. He poked fun at having the banner behind him reading as 'Dan + Shay' and had encouraged as many people as possible to take photos and post on social media in an effort to increase his following. He was actually very funny and had given the crowd someone on stage with whom they could personally relate. I hadn't seen anything like this in any other previous show of any other musical genre, and the addition of which was a very welcome feature for all as it drastically minimized any downtime or adrenaline crashes.
'Dan + Shay' were the next to take the stage. Vocally, I was impressed with their higher registers and would have liked to see them cover more of their own songs. However, their Guns N' Roses cover of 'Paradise City' as their intro and Def Leppard's 'Pour Some Sugar On Me' drew this duo's biggest cheers and applause from the packed Amway Center.
The very popular sibling trio of Kimberly, Reid, and Neil Perry -- better known as 'The Band Perry' -- was the 3rd musical act of the night. They came out pumping their fists to very glitzy light effects in the backstage and were highly energetic as they danced, played, and sang covering the entire stage floor. The group was fun and extremely engaging with the audience and musically they sounded very good together. For almost an hour, they performed 11 songs including cover versions of Pitbull's and Ke$ha's 'Timber' and Queen's 'Fat Bottomed Girls'.
Then at 9pm, the silhouette of a man is projected against the white silo-looking curtain, and Blake Shelton takes the stage to 'All About Tonight'. The crowd is having fun with him going into 'The More I Drink' with much of the predominantly cowboy hat-wearing audience singing along with big smiles and drinks of their own held high. The good time came to a slight halt with Shelton's 'She Wouldn't Be Gone' which was a slightly sobering reality of a song over its preceding tune. Blake slows things down on the next one 'Doing' What She Likes', but he's making all the ladies happy with this one as ladies in the audience sing along while watching their significant others. He unleashes his inner cowboy with the attitude-filled 'Kiss My Country Ass'. To this point in the show, I was pretty surprised to see so many people singing along word-for-word. Blake's a likable guy though, and in between songs as he banters with the crowd, it's more like we're watching one of our close friends / cousins who made it big and we're just all having a good ol' time up in Amway. He dons a cowboy hat with a built-in mullet as he sings 'Some Beach' and the crowd's all smiles.
He decides to cover George Jones' 'Ol' Red', a song about revenge, prison, and an old tracking bloodhound whose keen sense of smell made it impossible for inmates to escape from prison. So when Shelton spots a couple on the floor apparently becoming enamored with each other over the course of his singing this one, Shelton laughs at the end and singles out the couple telling the entire arena what he had just witnessed the couple doing. With their faces now on the projection screens overhead and flanking the stage, he states to them that he had never seen a display like that during any of his previous performances of that song and suggested that they might have a more enjoyable time with his next song 'Who Are You When I'm Not Looking', to which the gentleman audience member is seen singing to his lady friend while facing her, the song in its entirety. Shelton sings just over 20 songs tonight with his encore featuring a Kenny Loggins' cover of 'Footloose' and Shelton's own introspective 'God Gave Me You.'
The concert from start to finish ran slightly over 4 hours, but it didn't seem that any of the attendees had any problem with that. Shelton packed Amway Center to its maximum and had both men and women singing to almost every song he played. He did well to mix up the fun songs with the ballads tonight, and poked enough fun at himself and some of the audience that he eliminated the fine line between 'celebrity' and us regular folk. When factoring in the entertainment of Neal McCoy, 'Dan + Shay', and The Band Perry, concert-goers got their money's worth and then some with tonight's show.
He decides to cover George Jones' 'Ol' Red', a song about revenge, prison, and an old tracking bloodhound whose keen sense of smell made it impossible for inmates to escape from prison. So when Shelton spots a couple on the floor apparently becoming enamored with each other over the course of his singing this one, Shelton laughs at the end and singles out the couple telling the entire arena what he had just witnessed the couple doing. With their faces now on the projection screens overhead and flanking the stage, he states to them that he had never seen a display like that during any of his previous performances of that song and suggested that they might have a more enjoyable time with his next song 'Who Are You When I'm Not Looking', to which the gentleman audience member is seen singing to his lady friend while facing her, the song in its entirety. Shelton sings just over 20 songs tonight with his encore featuring a Kenny Loggins' cover of 'Footloose' and Shelton's own introspective 'God Gave Me You.'
The concert from start to finish ran slightly over 4 hours, but it didn't seem that any of the attendees had any problem with that. Shelton packed Amway Center to its maximum and had both men and women singing to almost every song he played. He did well to mix up the fun songs with the ballads tonight, and poked enough fun at himself and some of the audience that he eliminated the fine line between 'celebrity' and us regular folk. When factoring in the entertainment of Neal McCoy, 'Dan + Shay', and The Band Perry, concert-goers got their money's worth and then some with tonight's show.