It was amazing to finally catch Russell Dickerson on tour in the UK after first being introduced to his music the last time he toured in Bristol in 2022, as I have been listening to his music since. My personal favourites from his discography are ‘Blue Tacoma’ and ‘Yours’.
The ‘Good Day To Have A Great Tour’ show in Bristol was opened up by Tennessee native Redferrin. He is renowned as one of Nashville’s most “unorthodox and innovative new singer/songwriters” and his half an hour performance allowed concert goers at the O2 Academy to immediately get in the country mood. Playing songs from his debut album ‘Old No. 7’ which, perhaps, is named in ode to the famous Jack Daniel’s Whiskey, Blake Redferrin actually stated during his set that he spent a week at the JD Distillery in Lynchburg, TN recording music in his camper and drinking. Some of his music videos on YouTube appear to have been filmed at this distillery also.
One of my favourite songs from his album, ‘She’s Like Whiskey’, seemingly appears from the title to be about a woman but is actually confirmed to be about his dog. His canine pal accompanied him on his JD Distillery adventure but sadly got sick and passed away, so the beautiful song, in memory of his beloved dog, was the perfect tribute. Redferrin is definitely an artist to watch out for in the country music scene, as his songwriting, lyrical delivery and voice are all spectacular.
Earlier than any artist I’ve seen at the O2, Russell Dickerson took to the stage before 9:00pm and put on a brilliant show for roughly an hour and a half, accompanied by a four-piece band. Setting the atmosphere for the show, many fans turned up to the gig adorned in country themed attire which consisted of cowboy hats, boots and flannel shirts. The Bristol show happened hours before his EP ‘Bones’ was set to be released at midnight, and he performed many of the track-listed songs prior to its release that same evening. A certain fan amongst the standing crowd kept asking Russell for the hat he was wearing and he kept saying “well, I need to wear it” but this didn’t stop them from asking intermittently throughout the evening, to the point where other fans joined in and asked for the shirt the singer was wearing and so forth, which brought the crowd into collective laughter.
Halfway through the night, Russell’s band vacated the stage and the country artist performed an acoustic set for the crowd. A little later on, Russell made the crowd do a Mexican wave from left to right (his right to left), during the latter part of his song ‘Ride The Wave’. Russell’s crowd interaction was infectious throughout the evening and this energy also transferred to his band members as well who were equally as interactive with fans, often throwing guitar picks to the crowd and being extremely energetic whilst also multitasking, playing their respective instruments. The concert lighting was on point during the entire night; the lighting technicians did a flawless job so high props to them!
During the middle of Russell’s track, ‘That’s My Girl’, he and his band covered Cyndi Lauper’s iconic tune ‘Girls Just Wanna Have Fun’ and Whitney Houston’s staple song ‘I Wanna Dance With Somebody.’ Towards the end of the evening, Russell performed one of my personal favourites of his, ‘Yours’, which happens to be a massive fan favourite as well. Many people have used the intimate track as the soundtrack to their first dance at their wedding, and he spoke about it prior to performing stating that this was the song which basically brought him to the forefront, complete with a music video which cost a mere $6 and was filmed by his wife Kailey. The same song was nominated for two Grammy Awards for ‘Best Country Song’ along with ‘Best Country Album’ for his album titled ‘Yours’. This song in particular brought Dickerson a record deal and allowed him to tour with the likes of Lady Antebellum and Darius Tucker.
Despite the music video almost not being created, the visual is particularly striking as it features Russell walking down a long road as, in the background, a storm occurs with visible lighting, heavy winds and rain pouring on the artist towards the latter part of the video. I definitely recommend watching it for yourself as it’s pretty spectacular, especially considering it was so affordably made. You can also read about the entire premise of this music video on the Forbes website as well, as there is en entire article dedicated to it. Russell poignantly informed the Bristol crowd that a song he wrote about his wife, who changed his life, turned out to change his life for the better as well.
One of the most special moments of the night was when Russell took the time to thank the awestruck crowd, especially his longtime dedicated fans who had been supporting him since 2017/18. In a moment of pure emotional clarity, he said: “All I ever wanted to do was write songs and do this right here. To write songs and then come and play them to a room full of beautiful people like you tonight. This is crazy, it gets crazy sometimes.”
Make sure to check out ‘Bones’ The EP’, recently released by Russell Dickerson and now available on all streaming platforms.
Dan Rose @danrose.uk
Role: Photographer
I’m primarily a photographer for both concerts and festivals, and am also available for BTS photos, portraits, promo shoots and tour photography. I also write the occasional review.
Available for: Gig Shoots, Photo Shoots, Album and Single cover shoots and Touring
First attended gig: My most memorable early concert experience was seeing Eminem in 2014 at Wembley Stadium. This was a very pivotal moment in my life as it reinforced why I love music so much and reignited my passion for it.
First gig shot: The very first artist I photographed live was the DJ and producer Nathan Dawe at SWX Bristol. This was an incredibly fulfilling start to concert photography, as I was on stage with him during his set, and even hung out backstage afterwards.
Dream gig: My top 5 dream artists to one day photograph would be Eminem, J. Cole, Rod Wave, Jon Bellion, and Logic. One of my favourite artists, Juice WRLD, is sadly no longer alive, and I wish I had had the opportunity to see him perform live and photograph him.
