After my posting in April, which was already speculating about a country music boom in Germany and Central Europe, a lot has changed in the German country music scene and list of upcoming concerts. In general, internet forums and discussion groups feel to be much more active to me. The C2C in Berlin in March 2019 was like an initial spark for it. The much it was surprising that Germany gets that festival at all, the more it was that it will be played on three days in 2020, a weekend before the “big” C2C in London.

However, not just that festival is a factor. A lot of artists seem to take the detour to Germany, the Netherlands, sometimes even to Spain and France now, when they are doing some shows in the United Kingdom. On the German side, there are especially two promoters, Wizard Promotion and Semmel Concerts with their “Sound of Nashville” series, who seem to believe – and invest in this genre. I have seen quite some acts which will be visiting Germany and Central Europe the next months – here is my view on the country artists which make it to Germany the next months.

List of Concerts – Summer 2019 to Winter 2020

Here is the list of concerts I am aware of. I may update the list, where necessary. My review is based on my experience on recent festivals. I sorted the acts in chronological order of their first concert in Germany. Thus, some of the biggest acts are quite towards the end.

Wade Bowen (Support: Jamie Freeman)

Eleven albums published since 2002 – Wade Bowen is definitely not a newbie to the genre. The Texas Country artitsts had a couple of Top 10 country album chart entries and is beloved by the critics. After he already announced his first German concerts earlier, he will be in Hamburg, Berlin, Munich and Cologne for four shows. His support, Jamie Freeman, just released his debut album Dreams about falling in May 2019.

My View:
I did not know too much about Wade Bowen before I prepared for the summertime 2019 concerts – but I loved to listen to his songs from the very beginning. Texas Country is growing – and thus, I am sure that there will be quite some people who will enjoy the four nights with the 1977-born artist.

Kiefer Sutherland

Listing all movies and awards of Kiefer Sutherland’s career as an actor would likely blow up this posting. In 2016. the Hollywood Walk of Famer released his first album, Down in a Hole. Especially with his latest 2019 one, Reckless and Me, Sutherland had quite some success in Germany as well as in the UK. Thus, it is not that surprising that he is touring Europe for the second time in 2019 after he did some album preview shows earlier this year. In addition, he will play two shows in Wolfsburg in August.

My View:
I unfortunately haven’t seen Kiefer Sutherland live yet (and will also not make it to his concerts due to vacation), but I really like his straight music. The reviews of the shows he had earlier this year were massive, the intimate venues sold out in minutes – so I am sure he will give you a great evening during his October concerts.

Eric Paslay (Support: Cash Campbell, Lainey Wilson)

Eric Paslay’s Friday Night is one of the first songs which raised my interest into country music. The show curently has 14 million views on YouTube, She don’t love you has even been played there 20 milion times. These figures show: Eric Paslay is a big name and brings some hits to Germany. His supports are Cash Campbell and Lainey Wilson.

My View:
I haven’t seen Cash Campbell live so far, but at least two names on the lineup guarantee a fantasitc night: Lainey Wilson was doing an amazing show when I saw her in Nashville some weeks ego. I even had the chance to see Eric Paslay twice, on the major Riverfront stage as well as in the CMA Theater in a Songwriters Series. He is massive on stage. After the Theater performance, I could chat with him a bit – an absolutely nice and friendly guy who remembered quite much of his previous appearances in Germany. Welcome back – this will be a great evening for everybody definitely!

Thompson Square

Keifer and Shawna Thompson will visit Germany and the Netherlands for four concerts in early September. The married couple plays rather small clubs here, but they had quite significant success in North America already. Are you gonna kiss me or not has a stunning number of 25 million hits at YouTube and topped the US Country Charts. Their first two albums, Thompson Square and Just feels good came quite close to the top of the Billboard Country Album charts. Their 2018 album Masterpiece was, however, not that successful.

My View:
Thompson Square is a band with a lot of potential, which will bring two #1 hits to Central Europe. Even though Masterpiece was not that successful commercially, the reviews of the songs and the album are great. Watching the couple has definitely a lot of potential for an enjoyable country music evening.

Austin Jenckes, Jillian Jacqueline, Lauren Jenkins

As Austin Jenckes is unavailable on the first tour date at YUCA Club in Cologne, this small Sound of Nashville Tour of three artists is having a bit of an odd calendar. He will be supported by Jilian Jacqueline and Lauren Jenkins, who I both already saw live on stage. Jacqueline will be the headliner of the tour. Her biggest success was a duet with Keith Urban, but also her other songs had decent clicks. I love Lauren Jenkins and her music, her debut album No Saint received a well-deserved Top Pick! review on Flyctory.com.

My View:
One of the shows I am looking forward to most this summer: I love Lauren Jenkins and her debut album songs. I saw Jilian Jacqueline at the CMA Fest and liked her performance as well. Unfortunately, I will likely not make it to see Austin Jenckes, who has very good live reviews as well. You will have a great time with these three guys.

Morgan Evans

Will he bring his wife with him to Germany? The Australian country star and husband of Kelsea Ballerini will do a couple of shows in Europe and thereby also stop at the Berlin Franzz Club. Evans is more and more on the raise, especially after publishing Things that we drink to in 2018.

My View:
I will not be able to make it to Berlin on 9th September 2019 – but I am sure that everyone who does will have a great time. Evans is having a lot of good songs in his repertoire and I am sure he will catch the people in the capital. Bad luck that there is now show somewhere closer to the West of the country.

Cam

After she was loved by the German audience during the Country 2 Country in Berlin and admired by the Brits one week later in London, Cam is coming back to Europe, where she has quite a lot of fans. Sound of Nashville will present two shows in Germany, while Cam will also tour the Amsterdam Melkweg. The 2015 album Untamed was the biggest success of the Californian artists, which also features her #2 Billboard single, Burning House.

My View:
I have to out myself for being not a huge fan of Cam – but I know that there are many of you out there, who have a very different opinion about Camaron Marvel Ochs, which is the native name of the artist. People get caught by the sympathic sunshine-alike soul on stage and love listening to her voice. Go there and enjoy it 🙂

Sam Outlaw (Support: Lydia Luce)

Though born in South Dakota, Sam Outlaw grew up in Southern California. Thus, he describes his music as “SoCal country”. His real name is Sam Morgan, Outlaw is the maiden name of his mother. His first two albums had reasonable chart entries in the US. He is very popular in the UK, where he already won two UK Americana Awards. Due to that reason, he already toured Germany in 2018. Lydia Luce, who is supporting Outlaw on this tour, is a quite interesting artist as well. Her recent EP Azalea Strings partially features some songs, which are instrumental and feature violin play instead of her voice.

My View:
I saw Sam Outlaw in 2018, when I toured Cologne. I absolutely enjoyed the intimate evening with him, very straight and honest performance and a nice guy to chat with after the show. His Cologne show is in parallel to Lauren Jenkins and Jilian Jacqueline, so that I am not sure whether I will make it to Frankfurt or not.

The Steel Woods (Support: Sam Lewis)

Is there something like “Hard Country”? The Steel Woods have a lot of rock elements in their songs. Though the first recordings of the band around Wes Bayliss and Jason Cope date of 2016, they had their first big hit in 2017 already: Straw in the Wind reached already more than 2 million YouTube plays. The 2019 album Old News is the second one of the band. Apart from the UK, they will be touring the Netherlands and Germany in September 2019.

My View:
The Steel Woods definitely promise to a have an evening full of rockin’ country music in the Netherlands and Germany. I feel the band has a lovely style between the country genre, Southern Rock and even elements of Harder Rock sounds. Look forward to see them in Cologne.

Ingrid Andress

Just some two months before the actual shows, Wizard Promotion announced that Ingrid Andress will be making it to Germany for three shows. Being selected for the US CMT Next Women in Country Shows 2018, she emerging artists had a fabulous time the last two to three years and also made a couple of first chart and airplay entries. She will be in Germany for three shows.

My View:
Having her in the German clubs was a definite surprise, also due to the quite short notice. I will not be able to make it to her show in Cologne – but I am sure you will have an amazing time if you go there.

Jade Jackson (Support: Roads & Shoes)

I recently reviewed Jade Jackson’s album Wilderness and rated it close to very good. I loved the versatility in her songs. Wilderness was Jackson’s second album after the 2017 one, Gilded. There is not too much bio available about the 27 year old artist from California, unfortunately. Her support is Roads &  Shoes, a folk music duo from Cologne.

My View:
I really loved Wilderness and felt that the music must sound great live on stage – so I am definitely counting down the days until I can see her live in the Cologne Blue Shell. Hope that she will keep my expectations!

Ashley McBryde

If you have to name one female country music artist, who is characteristic for being uncharacteristic, you just have to name Ashley McBryde. Though her albums so far just had moderate chart placements, she was a 2019 Grammy Nominee. Her straight performances and songs like Fat and Famous, which I chose to be one of my most favorite C2C songs in 2019, lead to a steadily growing fan base, not just in North America, but also in the United Kingdom and Central Europe.

My View:
Ashley McBryde promises best and straight entertainment. Maybe she is a bit of a “different” character, but her songs and shows are very straight. Hosting her on German, Dutch and Swiss stages will definitely be a highlight of the next country music months in the region. If you have to chance to visit one of her shows, don’t even dare to hesitate.

Brad Paisley (support: Chris Lane)

If you had to choose the biggest artist in country music touring Germany in 2019, you would likely go for Brad Paisley. His list of successful records and awards is just massive. He is in the business for twenty years now and truly deserves to be named a country music legend. Not that surprising that most of his shows sold out quick. Chris Lane, who had #1 songs in the US Country Airplay and Canadian Country charts, is a top-notch support act.

My View:
I am jealous on everyone who got tickets for this one. I am sure you will have an amazing time. Having somebody like Brad Paisley in Copenhagen, Tilburg and Berlin is the ultimate proof that there is a country music potential in the region – hope there will be more gigs like him on tour in the future!

Old Dominion (Support: Jordan Davis)

Playing at the CMA Fest in front of 50,000 people in Nissan Stadium – is there any better statement that Old Dominion is one of the big guns in the business? The band had several top-selling songs and a huge fanbase worldwide. In October, there will be two shows in Germany and one in the Netherlands. Their support, Jordan Davis, is also popular among country music lovers and another huge name – his song Take it From Me has more than 18 million views on YouTube.

My View:
I haven’t been too touched by the CMA Fest performances of Old Dominion. Nevertheless, I feel it is a great honor to have them in Germany. I hope they will do great in the two shows in Germany and the one in Amsterdam. Jordan Davis is definitely a fantastic support act for this show as well.

Logan Mize

As part of the “Country Music Week” (which will last a bit longer than just a week…), Sound of Nashville brings Logan Mize to five shows in Germany. It will be the second time he is playing on German soil after he played Sound of Nashville shows in March 2019 between the Country 2 Country 2019 Festivals in Berlin and London.

My View:
I did not visit the Logan Mize shows in March 2019, but his reviews were excellent, even though the set played was rather short (as he played with Craig Campbell and Lauren Jenkins). It will be interesting, which support acts are added to him for the October dates and whether he will be able to attract the audience again as he did before.

Nikki Lane

Nikki Lane already released three albums. Her last one, Highway Queen even made to second-highest on the minor US Heat Album charts. The South Carolina Girl plays Outlaw Country. She won the Ameripolitan Award in Female Outlaw Country in 2017.

My View:
Lane has a very characteristic nickname: “Badass”. I feel that this is quite promising for her 2019 tour. I am not too much in her music and neither haven’t seen her live on stage. However, the reviews are very good and there is not too much good Female Outlaw Country on German stages anyway. I guess she will be worth the visit.

Midland

Midland had a blasting and overwhelming debut album. On the Rocks went second place in the Billboard Country album charts, Drinking Problem was likely the country music summer party song in 2017. Mr Lonely is the leadoff to a 2019 album, which they will feature in Amstedam in December.

My View:
I went to Glasgow to see Midland for their last tour in 2018 – and I was not caught that much. Many reviewers shared this feeling with me. Midland has to proof with their new album and the tour that they are not only an excellent studio band, but also good on stage. Hope they will make the Netherlands dance on 10th December.

Chase Rice

Chase Rice is another big name in the business. His 2015 album, Ignite the Night, topped the US country charts. Two years later, Lambs & Lions made it to #3. For his German and Dutch concerts, Chase Rice announced to play and acoustic set in five venues.

My View:
I saw Chase Rice a couple of times on stage in the last two years. However, he was always playing with a full band. He gave a blast to the audience from the very first to the very last minute. I absolutely look forward how he will be in an acoustic set. There are a lot of great songs so I cannot believe any other scenario than going home with a very, very happy smile.

Tyler Childers

Though Tyler Childers has quite great reviews, I did not know about him before I reviewed his amazing 2019 album Country Squire. Playing a mixture of country, folk and bluegrass, Childers is not necessarily a mainstream artist, but definitely an amazing musician.

My View:
The Country Squire songs and the bootlegs and songs I additionally heard during the review absolutely blew my mind. Bad luck that the Nijmegen show is on the same day like the Cologne Chase Rice one – I would definitely go there. I think that this show is an absolutely no-brainer – you will have a good time!

Brett Eldredge

Nearly in parallel to Chase Rice, Brett Eldredge will come to Germany for two shows in Cologne and Hamburg. The German fans loved him already during his C2C performance 2019 in Berlin. Any of his four studio albums has either topped the US Country charts or was second placed. Five of his songs lead the US Country Airplay charts – these are just two stats which show how successful Eldredge is in his home country.

My View:
I remember sitting with my wife Sarah at breakfast in the Hampton Inn Berlin the morning before the C2C 2019. There was a guy sitting next to us on the table, super-friendly, absolutely unremarkable. I somehow recognized his face – but I would never have dared to think that I am having my scrambled eggs next to a superstar like Brett Eldredge. Country musicians in general are very handy and easy to take – but the way he acted at the breakfast buffet, he did magic to the fans in Berlin in March 2019. I am sure that he will do musical magic again in January 2020 in Germany. You just must not miss it!

The Dead South

Bluegrass is something for country music nerds? The Dead South are proving you wrong if you feel so! Their 2016 In Hell I’ll Be In Good Company has been viewed 136 million times on YouTube. Their 2020 tour is one of the most massive ones in the country music scene. Thereby, the Canadians released their first album Good Company in 2014 through a German label. The 2016 long player Illusion and Doubt made it up to #5 in the US Bluegrass Billboard Charts. They are regarded to be a classic touring band.

My View:
Even if bluegrass is not your favorite country music genre, The Dead South may be worth a try. Their concert reviews are excellent and the number of concerts in this region shows their popularity on stage. I feel it will be a good time for you!

Country Music – More Postings

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Tyler Childers – Country Squire

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Jade Jackson: Wilderness (Album Review)

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Visiting CMA Fest 2019

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My Favorite CMA Fest Songs 2019

CMA Fest 2019 was just massive to me. So many artists, so many new people - I was just overwhelmed! ...
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All of the pictures and graphics used in here are artist material and are under copyright of the artist or the corresponding photographer.

Featured picture: Brett Eldgredge (cut), original by Michele Laurita