Keanu Reeves performs with Dogstar during the band’s All In Now Tour stop at The Sylvee in Madison on Aug. 29, 2026 (Photo by Deanna Glatczak).
Photos by Deanna Glatczak
Dogstar made its long-awaited Madison debut on Saturday, Aug. 29, bringing its All In Now Tour to The Sylvee for an evening of earnest, melody-driven alternative rock.
The name drawing the most immediate attention was inevitably Keanu Reeves, the globally recognized actor who occupies the less glamorous position at stage left with a bass in his hands. But once the initial excitement subsided, Dogstar proved that its appeal extends well beyond the novelty of seeing John Wick in a rock band. Alongside guitarist and lead vocalist Bret Domrose and drummer Robert Mailhouse, Reeves helped deliver a performance rooted in genuine chemistry, understated musicianship and three decades of friendship.
New York rock quartet The Backfires opened the evening with a youthful burst of riff-heavy energy. Formed in London before establishing itself in New York City, the group arrived in Madison shortly after releasing its sophomore album, Stardust. Alex Gomez, Harry Ruprecht, Matt Walter and Dylan Spiro made the most of their time on The Sylvee’s stage, offering a spirited introduction that carried traces of garage rock and the guitar-driven indie scene of the early 2000s.
Dogstar’s story stretches back to the early 1990s, but its current chapter feels more like a renewal than a nostalgia exercise. Following a hiatus that lasted more than two decades, the trio reunited and released Somewhere Between the Power Lines and Palm Trees in 2023. Its fourth studio album, All In Now, followed earlier this year and provided the foundation for Saturday’s performance.
The newer material gives the band a fuller and more confident sound without abandoning the unfussy qualities that have long defined it. Domrose remained the musical focal point, his vocals and guitar carrying the melodies while Mailhouse supplied an energetic rhythmic drive behind the kit. Reeves stayed locked into the low end, frequently leaning into his instrument and visibly enjoying the opportunity to simply be one-third of a working rock band.
Songs including “Siren,” “This Sphere,” “Joy,” “Wing,” “The Whisper” and “Shards of Rain” showcase the trio’s balance of grunge-tinted weight and polished alternative-rock hooks. The album’s title track works especially well as a statement of purpose for this era of Dogstar: three longtime friends committing themselves fully to a band that they never expected to revisit so many years later.
There was no attempt to turn the concert into a celebrity spectacle. Reeves remained an engaged but understated presence, allowing Domrose’s vocals and guitar work to lead while Mailhouse propelled the music from behind the drums. That lack of pretense became one of the performance’s most endearing qualities. Dogstar did not arrive in Madison to trade on its bassist’s filmography, it came to play as a band.
At The Sylvee, that distinction became increasingly clear as the night progressed. What might have brought some fans through the doors quickly gave way to something more sincere: a seasoned trio rediscovering how satisfying it can be to create, tour and share a stage together.
Check out Deanna Glatczak’s photos of Dogstar and The Backfires at The Sylvee below.
Keanu Reeves performs with Dogstar during the band’s All In Now Tour stop at The Sylvee in Madison on Aug. 29, 2026 (Photo by Deanna Glatczak).
Kacey Musgraves performs on opening night of her Middle of Nowhere Tour at Chicago’s sold-out United Center on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026. (Photo by Dan Garcia/The Early Registration)
By Dan Garcia
Kacey Musgraves has never been interested in choosing between country tradition and pop spectacle. On Friday night at Chicago’s United Center, she proved she could build a sold-out arena production around both without sacrificing the wit, warmth or plainspoken songwriting that made her a star.
Opening night of Musgraves’ “Middle of Nowhere Tour” was also her 38th birthday, turning an already celebratory occasion into something more personal. Late in the 95-minute performance, thousands of fans serenaded her with “Happy Birthday” between songs. Musgraves smiled and took in the moment, one of the evening’s few instances when the carefully engineered machinery of an arena tour gave way to something entirely spontaneous.
The production was enormous, but its most impressive quality was how frequently it made the cavernous United Center feel smaller.
A giant circular stage occupied the middle of the arena floor, with a star-shaped platform embedded within it. Around the perimeter, a moving walkway rotated clockwise, carrying Musgraves past every side of the sold-out crowd and ensuring there was rarely a truly bad angle. At the back of the floor stood a second, smaller performance space designed like an old rural roadhouse: a weather-beaten rectangular shack with corrugated metal siding and “Middle of Nowhere” signage. An American flag and Chicago flag hung inside.
That roadside outpost was where Musgraves began the night, appearing after AC/DC’s “Thunderstruck” played over the speakers to set the tone. Wearing a white tank top, blue jeans with a rhinestone star on the back, a white cowboy hat and an enormous silver “KM” belt buckle, she looked like she had stepped directly out of the visual world of her new album.
She opened with “Everybody Wants to Be a Cowboy” and “Dry Spell,” establishing the tour as a genuine showcase for Middle of Nowhere rather than a greatest-hits production with a few recent songs inserted around the edges. Musgraves performed 11 of the album’s 13 tracks, including “Abilene,” “Back on the Wagon,” “I Believe in Ghosts,” “Uncertain, TX,” “Horses and Divorces,” “Loneliest Girl,” “Rhinestoned,” “Mexico Honey” and the title track.
The new songs held their own alongside staples such as “High Horse,” “Merry Go ’Round,” “Butterflies,” “Golden Hour,” “Slow Burn,” “Space Cowboy” and “Follow Your Arrow.” The balance demonstrated how naturally Middle of Nowhere fits within Musgraves’ catalog. It may represent a deliberate return to the foundations of country music, but it does not sound like an artist retreating into her past. Instead, it feels like Musgraves reconnecting with the elements that have always made her work distinctive: direct storytelling, emotional precision and humor sharp enough to puncture any trace of sentimentality.
Midway through the concert, she explained why those qualities feel especially valuable now.
“I think a lot of people are really resonating with country music right now because it’s f***ing real,” Musgraves said.
“The country music I love, anyway… there are a lot of different kinds out there. I’m not going to get into that. There’s something for everybody. But the bones of the genre that I love so much come from real stories about real people. They’re simple, and they’re real. It’s storytelling. I think we’re all craving a bit of simplicity right now.”
That simplicity, she continued, was what she wanted to embrace on the new record, a response to a world in which common sense can sometimes seem lost along the way.
The comments carried additional weight coming from Musgraves, whose relationship with the country establishment has long been complicated and occasionally adversarial. Country radio was slow to embrace even some of her most celebrated work, while songs such as “Follow Your Arrow” challenged the genre’s social and cultural boundaries more than a decade ago. Musgraves, for her part, has never hesitated to needle the industry’s contradictions or distance herself from corners of the genre she finds inauthentic.
But Friday’s speech made the distinction clear: Her issue has never been with country music itself. It has been with the people who confuse tradition with rigidity, or authenticity with a narrowly approved set of attitudes. Musgraves’ affection for the genre’s fundamental tools; true stories, memorable details and complicated emotions expressed in simple language, remains sincere.
That reverence did not prevent the production from becoming gleefully ridiculous.
At one point, a pair of enormous, mirror-studded disco-ball testicles descended from the rafters. Musgraves climbed aboard and was lifted above the arena floor, shimmering high over the audience in what may be the most audacious piece of country-tour staging to enter the United Center.
“I’ve actually got my Nana in the house tonight,” she said. “She always told me, ‘Honey, if you’re going to do something, do it big. Do it sparkly.’”
After considering the absurd grandeur of the scene, Musgraves added: “This is what happens when nobody tells me no.”
It was the kind of moment that only she could pull off: outrageous but knowingly so, glamorous without taking glamour too seriously. Musgraves’ humor and personality have always been as essential to her concerts as her voice, and both remained intact despite the expanded scale. She jokingly identified herself as a “geriatric millennial,” bantered comfortably with the crowd and repeatedly undercut the evening’s grandest gestures with a dry aside or mischievous grin.
She also refused to remain isolated on the stage. During her cover of the Texas Tornados’ “(Hey Baby) ¿Qué pasó?,” Musgraves walked down into the pit and completed a full lap around the circular platform, singing from within the audience as fans crowded around her. It was an unusually close interaction for an arena production of this size and a reminder that the stage’s in-the-round design was not merely a visual gimmick. It allowed Musgraves to maintain a sense of connection from every direction.
Her set moved fluidly between the earthy and the extravagant. “Merry Go ’Round” and “Follow Your Arrow” reaffirmed how little Musgraves’ early writing has aged, while the shimmering “Golden Hour” material still supplied some of the concert’s most immediately recognizable melodies. “High Horse” brought the expected disco-country lift, and “Space Cowboy” remained quietly devastating without requiring any additional theatrical embellishment.
She closed with George Strait’s “All My Ex’s Live in Texas,” a playful final nod to the lineage running through the entire evening. As Paula Cole’s “Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?” played after the performance, the joke provided a fitting postscript. Musgraves had spent the previous hour and a half celebrating, interrogating and joyfully reinventing the cowboy mythology that surrounds her genre.
Opening nights are rarely this assured. They are typically where tours reveal their seams, where transitions drag, cues are missed and performers are still learning the dimensions of a new production. Musgraves instead arrived with a show that already felt fully formed, combining the intimacy of a Texas roadside bar with the visual ambition required to fill one of the country’s largest arenas.
The Middle of Nowhere, it turns out, is not an empty place. In Musgraves’ hands, it is crowded with stories, rhinestones, contradictions and thousands of people singing together. On Friday night, it was exactly where everyone wanted to be.
Kacey Musgraves performs on opening night of her Middle of Nowhere Tour at Chicago’s sold-out United Center on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026. (Photo by Dan Garcia/The Early Registration)
After more than three decades of international stardom, Ricky Martin finally made his Ravinia debut on Thursday night, bringing a whirlwind tour of Latin-pop history to the newly renovated Hunter Pavilion.
For 90 minutes, the Puerto Rican superstar moved between Spanish-language favorites, turn-of-the-century American smashes and more recent streaming successes. While Martin’s ubiquitous run atop the U.S. charts may be more than 25 years behind him, his energetic Ravinia performance demonstrated why his global popularity lasted well beyond the height of the late-’90s Latin-pop explosion.
Here are 10 reasons Ricky Martin’s Ravinia debut was worth the wait.
1. Because his Ravinia debut was long overdue
Martin has been performing since joining Menudo at age 12 and has spent decades headlining venues around the world. Somehow, however, his lengthy career had never brought him to Ravinia before Thursday night.
That made his first appearance at the Highland Park festival feel like a special occasion, particularly as it arrived during a year in which Martin returned to the American spotlight with a surprise appearance on one of the world’s biggest stages.
2. Because Ravinia is one of the most unique places to catch a concert
A Ricky Martin show can fill arenas and stadiums, but Ravinia provided an experience that few traditional venues could duplicate. Fans arrived early with elaborate picnics, spread out across the lawn and enjoyed a summer evening beneath the trees before Martin took the stage.
Once the music began, the relaxed atmosphere transformed into an outdoor dance party. The combination of Martin’s arena-sized energy and Ravinia’s intimate, picturesque surroundings made his debut feel unlike another ordinary stop on the tour.
3. Because the renovated pavilion was ready for a pop spectacle
Martin also arrived during the inaugural season of Ravinia’s transformed Hunter Pavilion, part of the festival’s ongoing, campus-wide renovation project.
The modernized space retained the open-air personality of the historic venue while providing a refreshed setting capable of hosting Martin’s polished production. If Ravinia wanted an artist to show off what its renovated centerpiece could handle, the consummate showman was an ideal choice.
4. Because 90 minutes was barely enough time to catch your breath
Martin performed for approximately an hour and a half, but the show rarely lost momentum. He packed the evening with dance-floor anthems, romantic ballads, choreography and hits pulled from several different periods of his career.
Even the slower selections felt deliberately placed, giving Martin and the audience brief opportunities to breathe before the tempo accelerated again.
5. Because “María” remains irresistible in any language
Long before “Livin’ la Vida Loca” made Martin unavoidable on American radio, “María” helped introduce him to audiences around the world.
Its famous “un, dos, tres” refrain still required no translation at Ravinia. The song’s instantly recognizable rhythm and chorus made it one of the evening’s most joyous reminders that Martin was already an international star before much of the United States knew his name.
6. Because he reminded everyone that his catalog started long before 1999
For casual American listeners, Ricky Martin’s career may begin with his explosive performance of “The Cup of Life” at the 1999 Grammy Awards and the release of “Livin’ la Vida Loca” shortly afterward.
Thursday’s set told a much more complete story. Songs such as “María,” “Vuelve,” “La bomba” and “Por arriba, por abajo” showed that his English-language crossover was not the beginning of his success. It was simply the moment America caught up with a phenomenon that had already spread across much of the world.
7. Because the bilingual setlist never felt divided
Martin transitioned naturally between Spanish- and English-language songs rather than separating the concert into two distinct halves. “She Bangs,” “Shake Your Bon-Bon” and “She’s All I Ever Had” comfortably shared the program with “Pégate,” “Tu recuerdo,” “La mordidita” and “Vente Pa’ Ca.”
The balance allowed different segments of the audience to recognize different favorites while presenting every era and language as part of the same career.
8. Because his dancing has lost remarkably little electricity
At 54, Martin was not interested in presenting a stationary greatest-hits performance. He moved across the stage with the confidence, physicality and charisma that helped make him one of pop music’s defining performers.
More importantly, the choreography never appeared to be included solely to recreate the past. Martin performed like an artist still determined to defend his reputation as an elite entertainer.
9. Because his Super Bowl cameo suddenly felt like a preview
Just six months before his Ravinia debut, Martin made a surprise appearance during Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl LX halftime show, performing “LO QUE LE PASÓ A HAWÁI” during the first halftime production presented entirely in Spanish.
The moment connected two generations of Puerto Rican superstardom. Bad Bunny represents Latin music’s current position at the center of global pop culture, while Martin helped open many of those doors decades earlier. His appearance also introduced him to a younger audience just in time for Thursday’s career-spanning celebration.
10. Because “Livin’ la Vida Loca” and “The Cup of Life” made an unbeatable finish
Martin saved his two most obvious American crowd-pleasers for the end, closing the concert with the one-two punch of “Livin’ la Vida Loca” and “The Cup of Life.”
The pairing neatly summarized the enormous scope of his career. One became his defining American pop hit, while the other introduced him to millions around the world as an international anthem. More than 25 years later, both songs still possessed enough energy to turn Ravinia into one enormous dance floor, and finally bring Martin’s long-awaited debut to a fitting conclusion.
AJR makes its Wisconsin State Fair debut at the Milwaukee Mile on Saturday, Aug. 15, 2026 (Photo by Dan Garcia).
AJR has developed a strong relationship with Wisconsin through its many Summerfest appearances, but Saturday night brought the indie-pop band somewhere new: the Wisconsin State Fair.
Making its State Fair debut at the Milwaukee Mile, AJR delivered a condensed version of the ambitious production that has carried the group from festival stages to arenas. The performance packed plenty of hits, surprises, theatrical touches and signature AJR weirdness into a brisk 14-song set.
Following the recorded “OK Overture,” AJR wasted little time getting to familiar material. “Bummerland” opened the live portion of the concert, immediately establishing the upbeat tone that would carry much of the evening. “Sober Up,” “Way Less Sad” and “Karma” followed, giving the audience one recognizable song after another before “Bang!” provided the first major peak of the night.
It was an especially front-loaded setlist, but that worked well in a State Fair environment. Unlike an arena filled almost exclusively with devoted fans, a fair concert can attract everyone from longtime followers to casual listeners who simply recognize the radio singles. AJR made sure both groups had something familiar to latch onto within the opening minutes.
Even without Adam Met, the performance never felt short on energy. Jack Met remained one of pop music’s most animated frontmen, constantly giving the audience something to watch while Ryan Met moved between instruments and helped guide the show through its frequent shifts in sound and mood.
That contrast between the two brothers remains one of the most effective parts of an AJR concert. Jack provides the kinetic energy at the front of the stage, while Ryan often feels like the person pulling the musical strings behind him. Together, they make songs built from countless electronic layers feel surprisingly human in a live setting.
The concert also demonstrated why AJR’s music translates so well to a large outdoor stage. Its songs are filled with sudden stops, booming horns, vocal effects and dramatic crescendos that almost demand a visual accompaniment. Rather than simply performing the studio versions, the band regularly built little scenes around the music, making the show feel closer to a carefully paced theatrical production than a standard festival set.
At times, that level of precision can make an AJR performance feel rehearsed down to the second. But that is also part of the appeal. The band has never tried to present itself as a loose, spontaneous rock group. Its identity comes from showing the audience how many strange ideas and moving pieces can be packed into a pop song without losing the melody underneath.
That creativity extended beyond AJR’s own catalog. A cover of Fountains of Wayne’s “Stacy’s Mom” was an unexpected addition, but its playful power-pop sound fit comfortably alongside the band’s material. AJR did not need to completely reinvent the early-2000s hit for it to work; the song’s humor, huge chorus and slightly offbeat personality already made it feel like a natural choice.
“Ordinaryish People” and “The Good Part” followed before the concert began moving into more emotional territory. Those songs helped prevent the nonstop energy of the opening stretch from becoming exhausting, allowing the audience—and the performance itself—a chance to breathe.
Ryan then delivered a piano-driven version of “Inertia,” stripping back one of AJR’s most emotional songs and placing greater emphasis on its lyrics. In a performance filled with rapid visual changes and carefully constructed production, the relative simplicity of the arrangement made it stand out.
The most memorable shift of the night came when Jack and Ryan left the stage and moved into the crowd for “World’s Smallest Violin” and “Steve’s Going to London.” Both songs were already obvious singalong opportunities, but performing them among the audience turned two of the band’s biggest streaming-era favorites into the evening’s most personal moments.
It also reinforced AJR’s ability to balance spectacle with accessibility. The show may have been filled with technology, effects and tightly timed transitions, but the brothers were still willing to remove some of that distance and meet their audience where it stood. For fans farther from the stage, it offered a much closer look than they likely expected when they took their seats.
AJR has also always been unusually open about how its music is assembled. Rather than hiding the samples, effects and unconventional sounds behind its songs, the band often makes that construction part of the performance. “100 Bad Days” arrived with an introduction demonstrating how the song came together, turning the concert into a brief behind-the-scenes lesson.
For another artist, stopping to explain a song’s ingredients might have slowed the evening down. For AJR, it felt entirely on brand. The band’s music has always carried a homemade sense of curiosity, as though every track began with the brothers asking what would happen if they combined sounds that were never intended to fit together.
The final stretch delivered exactly what the audience wanted. “Burn the House Down” brought one of the concert’s biggest bursts of energy, its booming production sounding especially fitting at the Milwaukee Mile. After the “How We Made It” introduction to “100 Bad Days,” AJR closed the night with “Weak.”
Ending with “Weak” was predictable, but it was also the correct decision. The song remains one of the clearest examples of the band’s formula: self-deprecating lyrics, an instantly recognizable hook and production designed to grow larger with every chorus. With the crowd singing along, it brought AJR’s first Wisconsin State Fair performance to an appropriately loud conclusion.
It may have taken AJR several successful Milwaukee visits to finally reach the Wisconsin State Fair, but the band looked perfectly at home once it arrived. In a setting known for oversized food, loud attractions and sensory overload, AJR somehow managed to fit right in.
AJR makes its Wisconsin State Fair debut at the Milwaukee Mile on Saturday, Aug. 15, 2026 (Photo by Dan Garcia).
Train performs during the “Drops of Jupiter: 25 Years in the Atmosphere Tour” at Breese Stevens Field in Madison, Wisconsin, on Saturday, Aug. 8, 2026. Photo by Deanna Glatczak.
Photos by Deanna Glatczak
Train brought the Drops of Jupiter: 25 Years in the Atmosphere Tour to Breese Stevens Field on Saturday, August 8, turning a summer night in Madison into a celebration of one of pop-rock’s most enduring albums. With Barenaked Ladies and Matt Nathanson completing the bill, the evening unfolded as a three-act trip through decades of familiar hooks, heartfelt songwriting and field-wide singalongs.
Nathanson opened the show with the warmth and conversational charm that have long defined his performances. His songs are rooted in direct emotions and small, recognizable details, giving the large outdoor setting an unexpectedly personal beginning. It was an easygoing introduction to a night built around music that audiences have carried with them for years.
Barenaked Ladies followed with the mix of musicianship, humor and rapid-fire wordplay that has made the Canadian band such a distinctive live act. Their playful energy gave the middle of the evening its own personality while keeping the crowd fully involved. On a tour filled with nostalgia, the band reminded Madison that familiar songs can still feel spontaneous when the performers leave room for fun.
By the time Train took the stage, the night had already become a celebration of longevity. This year marks a quarter-century since the release of Drops of Jupiter, the 2001 album that transformed the group’s career and produced its Grammy-winning title track. Twenty-five years later, those songs no longer belong only to the moment in which they were released; they have become part of the memories, relationships and milestones of the people singing along.
That history gave Train’s performance a sense of scale, but the band’s appeal still came down to something immediate. Pat Monahan has always delivered the group’s biggest choruses with a combination of polish and openness, making songs designed for radio and amphitheaters feel personal. At Breese Stevens Field, that balance turned the audience into one shared voice.
The historic outdoor stadium also felt like an ideal setting for the anniversary. It was large enough to give the songs the celebration they deserved, yet contained enough to preserve the connection at the center of them. As daylight faded over Madison, the concert moved naturally from Nathanson’s singer-songwriter intimacy to Barenaked Ladies’ playful pop and finally to Train’s full-scale closing set.
The evening looked back without feeling trapped in the past. Train remains an active band with new music ahead, but Saturday made a persuasive case for pausing to recognize the album that changed everything. A quarter-century after Drops of Jupiter first entered the atmosphere, its emotional pull, and the crowd’s desire to sing every word, showed no sign of falling back to Earth.
Deanna Glatczak captured Train, Barenaked Ladies and Matt Nathanson during their summer night at Breese Stevens Field. Check out the photo gallery below.
Nelly performs at the Bank Five Nine Main Stage during the Wisconsin State Fair in West Allis, Wisconsin, on Friday, Aug. 7, 2026. (Photo by Dan Garcia/The Early Registration)
Nelly didn’t need to say much to establish that Friday night’s concert was tailored specifically for Wisconsin.
The three-time Grammy winner arrived on the Bank Five Nine Main Stage wearing a Wisconsin State Fair T-shirt, immediately transforming what could have been another stop on the summer circuit into something that felt distinctly local. It was a simple gesture, but also the perfect visual introduction to a performance built on familiarity, personality and more than two decades of hits.
With the shirt across his chest and a catalog seemingly made for summer nights, Nelly looked completely at home at the fair.
The St. Louis rapper wasted little time getting to the songs that made him one of the defining voices of the early 2000s. “Where the Party At” served as a fitting introduction before “E.I.” and “Shake Ya Tailfeather” accelerated the set. “Batter Up,” “Air Force Ones,” “Country Grammar” and “Ride Wit Me” continued an opening stretch that played like a greatest-hits collection before the concert had even reached its midpoint.
For longtime fans, the sequence offered one reminder after another of just how deep Nelly’s catalog runs. Those songs have lived far beyond the albums that introduced them, becoming staples of radio stations, parties, sporting events and playlists shared between generations.
That familiarity also made the concert especially effective in a State Fair setting. Nelly didn’t need elaborate storytelling between every track because the songs carried their own histories. A beat, a hook or one of his unmistakable opening lines was enough to transport listeners back to a different summer.
The middle of the performance demonstrated the range that helped his music reach such an unusually broad audience. “Cruise,” “Lil Bit” and “Over and Over” revisited his country-crossover success, while “Pimp Juice,” “Grillz” and “Move That Body” returned the show to the swagger and club-ready energy at the center of his career.
Nelly performs at the Bank Five Nine Main Stage during the Wisconsin State Fair in West Allis, Wisconsin, on Friday, Aug. 7, 2026. (Photo by Dan Garcia/The Early Registration)
Nelly has always existed comfortably between genres. His music can move from hip-hop to pop, R&B and country without making those shifts feel unnatural. At the State Fair, that versatility allowed him to connect with a crowd whose relationship with his music likely began in very different places.
Some may remember buying Country Grammar or Nellyville when they were new. Others may know “Hot in Herre” from countless parties or “Dilemma” through social media and streaming playlists. Friday’s performance brought those different points of entry together.
Nelly saved three of his most recognizable songs for the finish, beginning with “Hot in Herre.” More than two decades after its release, the track remains virtually automatic in a live setting. It only takes the opening seconds for a crowd to understand what is coming.
“Dilemma” followed, shifting the mood from celebration to one of the biggest rap-and-R&B collaborations of its generation. The evening then closed with “Just a Dream,” giving the finale a more reflective tone and proving that Nelly’s catalog can still produce a massive communal moment even when the tempo slows.
Together, the final three songs neatly summarized the range of his career: a party anthem, a crossover duet and an emotional pop-rap ballad.
Friday’s concert wasn’t about introducing a new version of Nelly. It was about demonstrating why the original has endured.
His songs remain immediately identifiable, accessible across genres and attached to memories that span more than 25 years. At the Wisconsin State Fair, he delivered them with the ease of an artist who understands that sometimes the strongest performance is simply giving fans exactly what they came to hear.
Check out our photos from Nelly’s performance at the Wisconsin State Fair below.
Photos by Dan Garcia/The Early Registration
Nelly performs at the Bank Five Nine Main Stage during the Wisconsin State Fair in West Allis, Wisconsin, on Friday, Aug. 7, 2026. (Photo by Dan Garcia/The Early Registration)
Nelly performs at the Bank Five Nine Main Stage during the Wisconsin State Fair in West Allis, Wisconsin, on Friday, Aug. 7, 2026. (Photo by Dan Garcia/The Early Registration)
Max McNown brought The Summer Vacation Tour to the Sylvee on Thursday, August 6, giving Madison a close-up look at one of country and folk music’s fastest-rising young songwriters.
Sam Burchfield opened the evening with a rootsy set shaped by the sounds and storytelling traditions of Southern Appalachia. His warm, grounded approach made him a natural fit for the tour, setting an intimate tone before McNown took the stage.
McNown’s path to rooms like The Sylvee has moved remarkably quickly. The Oregon native taught himself guitar, busked across Southern California and built an audience online before songs including “A Lot More Free” and “Better Me for You (Brown Eyes)” carried his music far beyond social media. Thursday’s crowd made the scale of that rise impossible to miss.
Yet McNown’s appeal still rests on something much smaller and more personal than streaming totals or chart positions. His songs are built around direct storytelling, plainly delivered emotions and choruses that feel familiar before they are even finished. At The Sylvee, that writing translated naturally from solitary confession into a room-wide singalong.
The venue also felt like an ideal setting for this stage of McNown’s career. The show was large enough to demonstrate how quickly his audience has grown, but intimate enough to preserve the closeness that gives his music its weight. Even with a packed house singing along, the night retained the feeling of a songwriter sharing stories at arm’s length.
That balance, between a rapidly expanding career and songs that still feel deeply personal, made the Madison stop stand out. The Summer Vacation Tour may have arrived during the hottest stretch of the year, but McNown’s reflective folk-country offered something more lasting than a seasonal escape.
Deanna Glatczak captured Max McNown and Sam Burchfield during their sold-out night at The Sylvee. Check out the photo gallery below.
Totally Tubular Festival transformed the Hollywood Palladium into a nonstop ’80s dance party on Friday, July 24, packing seven acts and an entire decade’s worth of nostalgia into one fast-moving night.
Tommy Tutone opened the evening before The Escape Club, Animotion, The Producers, Bow Wow Wow, A Flock of Seagulls and Thomas Dolby & The Lost Toy People took their turns onstage. For much of the night, the festival moved like a rapid-fire mixtape, with the earlier performers delivering quick snippets of familiar favorites rather than traditional full-length sets.
That compact format was part of the fun. The brief changeovers rarely interrupted the momentum, as a steady mix of ’80s classics kept the Palladium dancing between performances. There was almost always another recognizable chorus around the corner, whether it was coming from the stage or filling the room while the next act prepared to take it.
The night’s high point belonged to The Escape Club and “Wild, Wild West.” In a show built almost entirely around instant recognition, the song generated the evening’s most exciting few minutes and stood out as the best performance of the festival.
A Flock of Seagulls and Thomas Dolby & The Lost Toy People were given more room to stretch out at the end of the night, allowing the closing sets to breathe after the rapid pace of the earlier performances. By then, Totally Tubular had already delivered exactly what its name promised: a colorful, concentrated celebration of the songs that continue to make the ’80s such an easy decade to revisit.
For a festival built around one memorable moment after another, a photo gallery feels like the perfect way to relive it. Dan DeSlover captured the evening’s parade of ’80s favorites from Tommy Tutone through Thomas Dolby & The Lost Toy People.
Check out Dan DeSlover’s photos from the Totally Tubular Festival at the Hollywood Palladium below.
Brian Johnson and Angus Young of AC/DC perform at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisconsin, on Sunday, July 19, 2026. (Dan Garcia/The Early Registration)
AC/DC had been away from Madison for far too long.
Before Sunday night, the Australian rock legends had not performed in Wisconsin’s capital since visiting the Kohl Center in May 2001. They returned in appropriately massive fashion, bringing the POWER UP Tour, The Pretty Reckless and enough rock ’n’ roll firepower to fill Camp Randall Stadium.
Led by Angus Young and Brian Johnson, AC/DC delivered a set stacked with songs that have become part of rock’s permanent vocabulary. From the opening notes of “If You Want Blood” through “For Those About to Rock,” the band made its long-awaited Madison return count.
Here are 10 reasons AC/DC’s Camp Randall concert was worth the 25-year wait.
1. Madison’s 25-year wait finally ended
AC/DC’s last Madison performance took place at the Kohl Center on May 11, 2001. That quarter-century absence made Sunday’s show feel like much more than another stop on the POWER UP Tour.
For some fans, it was their first opportunity to see AC/DC in their own backyard. For others, it was a reunion they had been awaiting since the beginning of the century. Either way, the lengthy gap gave the concert a sense of occasion before the first chord was even played.
2. “If You Want Blood” was the perfect opening declaration
AC/DC did not waste time gradually building toward its biggest material. Instead, the band opened with “If You Want Blood (You’ve Got It),” immediately setting the tone for a night of loud, direct and gloriously uncomplicated rock ’n’ roll.
The song served as both an invitation and a warning. After 25 years without an AC/DC concert in Madison, the band returned ready to give Wisconsin everything it had been missing.
3. “Back in Black” arrived almost immediately
Most rock bands would build an entire encore around a song as monumental as “Back in Black.” AC/DC played it second.
That placement demonstrated the almost ridiculous depth of the band’s catalog. Even after unleashing one of the most recognizable riffs ever recorded within the concert’s opening minutes, AC/DC still had “Thunderstruck,” “Highway to Hell,” “Hells Bells,” “You Shook Me All Night Long” and plenty more waiting in reserve.
It also gave “Back in Black” a fitting secondary meaning. AC/DC was not only back onstage, it was finally back in Madison.
4. Angus Young remained one of rock’s greatest showmen
The schoolboy uniform, duckwalk and animated expressions are some of rock music’s most familiar images, but they remain more than nostalgic trademarks. Angus Young still understands how to take command of a stadium.
Now 71, the guitarist spent the evening moving across the enormous stage, squeezing every ounce of personality from his guitar and reminding the crowd why he remains the unmistakable face of AC/DC.
His extended spotlight during “Let There Be Rock” was particularly impressive. It was part guitar showcase, part endurance test and entirely Angus Young.
5. Brian Johnson still had plenty left in the tank
Brian Johnson’s voice has always sounded as though it is being pushed to its absolute limit. At 78 years old, he continued to attack some of rock’s most demanding songs with his unmistakable grit.
Johnson worked the stage with a smile, encouraging the Camp Randall crowd to supply its own considerable volume whenever the choruses arrived. His weathered rasp remains an essential component of the AC/DC sound, especially on staples such as “Back in Black,” “Shoot to Thrill” and “You Shook Me All Night Long.”
It may no longer be effortless, but rock ’n’ roll was never supposed to sound effortless.
6. Camp Randall was built for “Thunderstruck”
Few songs are better suited for a college football stadium than “Thunderstruck.”
Its opening guitar figure created immediate anticipation, while the repeated chants transformed tens of thousands of concertgoers into active participants. Inside a venue already known for producing deafening crowds on football Saturdays, the AC/DC classic sounded completely at home.
For a few minutes, Camp Randall belonged neither to the Badgers nor visiting football teams. It belonged to Angus Young and one of the greatest stadium-rock songs ever written.
7. “You Shook Me All Night Long” united generations
AC/DC’s influence now stretches across several generations, and the Camp Randall audience reflected it.
Some fans first heard “You Shook Me All Night Long” when Back in Black arrived in 1980. Others discovered it through classic-rock radio, movies, sporting events, video games or their parents’ record collections. On Sunday, those generational differences disappeared as the entire stadium sang its chorus together.
AC/DC’s music has never required an explanation or an expiration date. A great riff remains a great riff, no matter when someone first encounters it.
8. The encore delivered two perfect closing statements
After a night overflowing with recognizable riffs, AC/DC still had two enormous songs saved for the encore.
“T.N.T.” gave the audience one final opportunity to shout along, with its explosive refrain seemingly designed for a stadium crowd. Then came “For Those About to Rock (We Salute You),” a song that has long functioned as AC/DC’s ultimate farewell.
Complete with the track’s signature cannon blasts, the finale delivered exactly the kind of excessive, thunderous conclusion the occasion deserved.
9. The Pretty Reckless were an ideal opening act
Opening a stadium show for AC/DC is no small assignment, but The Pretty Reckless possessed the necessary songs, attitude and volume to prepare Camp Randall for the headliner.
Led by Taylor Momsen, the band brought a darker edge to the evening while remaining firmly connected to the classic hard-rock tradition AC/DC helped establish. Songs including “Heaven Knows,” “Going to Hell” and “Take Me Down” have given The Pretty Reckless a formidable catalog of its own.
Rather than feeling like an unrelated addition to the bill, the group provided a natural bridge between generations of hard rock.
10. It was a rare chance to see Camp Randall become a concert venue
Camp Randall is one of college football’s most recognizable stadiums, but major concerts there remain special occasions.
After going decades with relatively few large-scale shows, the stadium returned to the concert circuit in a major way in 2025. Even so, seeing its field covered with fans and an enormous stage occupying one end zone remains far from an everyday experience.
AC/DC was also an ideal band for the setting. The group’s bells, cannons, towering production and stadium-sized riffs would have overwhelmed a smaller space. At Camp Randall, everything felt appropriately enormous.
Sunday offered two rarities at once: the first AC/DC concert in Madison in 25 years and an opportunity to see one of Wisconsin’s most famous stadiums transformed into a massive rock ’n’ roll venue. Both were worth the wait.
Check out our photos from the highly anticipated performance below.
Brian Johnson and Angus Young of AC/DC perform at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisconsin, on Sunday, July 19, 2026. (Dan Garcia/The Early Registration)
Riley Green performs during Country Thunder Wisconsin at Shadow Hill Ranch in Twin Lakes, Wisconsin, on Saturday, July 18, 2026 (Dan Garcia/The Early Registration).
Country Thunder Wisconsin found the perfect artist to lead its Saturday-night celebration as Riley Green took over the festival’s main stage at Shadow Hill Ranch in Twin Lakes.
Following a full day of performances from Nate Smith, Dasha, Lonestar and more, Green rewarded the thousands of fans who remained on the grounds with a headlining set built around traditional country storytelling, enormous singalongs and some of the biggest songs of his career.
Here are eight reasons Riley Green delivered at Country Thunder Wisconsin.
1. He was the perfect Saturday-night headliner
Every night of Country Thunder carries its own personality, and Green was exactly the right artist to anchor Saturday’s festivities.
His music combines the traditional country foundation longtime festivalgoers love with enough contemporary hits to attract a younger generation of fans. By the time he stepped onto the stage for his scheduled 10 p.m. set, the crowd was ready for a headliner capable of bringing everyone together.
Green did exactly that, closing the festival’s third day with the kind of performance that felt tailor-made for a summer Saturday night in Twin Lakes.
2. “I Wish Grandpas Never Died” created an emotional singalong
Country Thunder may be known for its parties, packed campgrounds and late nights, but Green also gave the festival one of its most heartfelt moments.
“I Wish Grandpas Never Died” has grown into much more than another hit in his catalog. Its reflections on family, loss and a disappearing way of life have made it a song that listeners attach to their own memories.
When Green brought it to Twin Lakes, thousands of voices joined together for a singalong that was as emotional as it was loud. It was the type of moment that reminded fans why the best country songs can feel deeply personal, even when they are being performed for an enormous festival crowd.
3. He delivered the traditional country music Country Thunder was built for
Green has achieved mainstream success without distancing himself from the traditional sounds and stories that helped build country music.
Songs about family, heartbreak, rural life and the places that shaped him were right at home at Shadow Hill Ranch. Guitars and country instrumentation remained at the center of the performance, while Green’s Alabama drawl gave every song an unmistakable identity.
Country music continues to expand in countless directions, but Green demonstrated that there is still an enormous appetite for straightforward storytelling and traditional influences.
4. He arrived during the biggest chapter of his career
Green didn’t come to Country Thunder as an artist relying only on past accomplishments. He arrived with more momentum than at any previous point in his career.
His catalog continues to grow, his headlining shows are getting bigger and his collaborations have become some of country music’s most recognizable songs. He is also preparing to release his fourth studio album, That’s Just Me, on September 18.
Add his upcoming role as a coach on Season 30 of The Voice, and Green is clearly entering a new tier of country stardom. Country Thunder fans caught him at the perfect time: established enough to deliver a hit-filled headlining set, but still climbing.
5. The crowd knew much more than just the radio singles
Green could have built a successful festival performance around recognizable singles such as “There Was This Girl,” “Worst Way” and “I Wish Grandpas Never Died.” Saturday’s crowd, however, showed that its connection to his music runs much deeper.
Fans responded to album cuts and earlier favorites with the same enthusiasm they reserved for his biggest radio hits. Lyrics echoed across the grounds throughout the performance, often with Green needing little encouragement to hand portions of the songs over to the audience.
That familiarity transformed the concert from a standard festival set into a gathering of fans who had followed Green’s career well beyond the songs they heard on the radio.
6. He rewarded everyone who stayed through a full Saturday of music
Country Thunder’s Saturday lineup gave fans plenty of reasons to arrive early.
The day featured a mix of current stars and familiar favorites, including Dasha, Nate Smith and Lonestar. After hours of music, heat, walking and festival celebrations, Green still had to provide the payoff at the end of the night.
He proved worth the wait.
Rather than allowing the energy to fade as the evening stretched toward midnight, Green gave the crowd a final burst of momentum. His biggest songs inspired some of Saturday’s loudest reactions and sent fans back to their campsites with another memorable Country Thunder headlining performance behind them.
7. He brought fresh ACM Awards momentum to Twin Lakes
Green’s Country Thunder appearance came only months after another major career milestone.
“Don’t Mind If I Do,” his collaboration with fellow Alabama native Ella Langley, earned Music Event of the Year at the 2026 ACM Awards. The victory added another accolade to a song that had already become a fan favorite and helped cement Green and Langley as one of contemporary country music’s most popular pairings.
That award-show success added to the feeling that Country Thunder welcomed Green during a particularly important moment in his career. He wasn’t simply revisiting the songs that made him successful, he was celebrating achievements that were still unfolding.
8. Wisconsin fans received two Riley Green shows in three days
Country Thunder wasn’t Green’s only Wisconsin performance of the week.
Just two days before his Saturday-night set in Twin Lakes, Green performed at the Resch Center in Ashwaubenon. The quick return gave his most dedicated Wisconsin fans the rare opportunity to see him twice in three days, while also bringing his music to opposite sides of the state.
For southeastern Wisconsin fans, however, Country Thunder offered the complete summer setting. With thousands gathered outdoors at Shadow Hill Ranch, Green’s traditional country sound and rapidly expanding catalog felt exactly where they belonged.
Riley Green performs during Country Thunder Wisconsin at Shadow Hill Ranch in Twin Lakes, Wisconsin, on Saturday, July 18, 2026 (Dan Garcia/The Early Registration).
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