One of the biggest shows of the year rolled through the Western New York area this past Sunday night. Jelly Roll brought his Beautifully Broken tour to an appreciative sold-out crowd. Accompanying him were two of the hottest country artists going in Warren Zeiders and Alexandra Kay.
Opening the show was Alexandra Kay. Kay has been really making a name for herself the last few years by opening for Tim McGraw and also collaborating with musical giants Randy Travis, Jo Dee Messina and Scott Stapp of Creed. She released her debut effort titled ‘All I’ve Ever Known’ in October of 2023. She is independent artist and has funded the start of her career without then backing of record label. Her 35-minute set consisted of 8 songs. Kay came off very warming and endearing to the crowd throughout her set. She talked about writing “I Hate Airplanes” while in a long-distance relationship. She really got the crowd off on the right foot and I expect her to keep climbing that country trajectory to superstardom.
Up next was Warren Zeiders. The first thing I noticed for Zeiders show was how big his production was. His stage was that of a headliner with all the bells and whistles. Almost immediately, he had pyro incorporated into the 1st song of his performance. His 9-song set consisted of a few new songs in “Take it to the Grave” and “Best I’ve Ever Had” off his newest release ‘Relapse.’ When Zeiders performed his 1st number one song in “Pretty Little Poison,” it got an overwhelmingly positive response. He closed the set with a song that put his name on the map in “Ride the Lightning.” It was impressive to see that Zeiders knows how to deliver an over-the-top quality show. That’s from an opening slot too, which makes it even more impressive. With 4 studio efforts under his belt already, I can’t wait to see what he can do with a headlining slot.
Headlining the show was Jelly Roll. His rise in the country world has been meteoric in the short time he has been involved the genre. “Son of a Sinner” was his first number one country hit back in January of 2023. Since that time, he has not only taken the country world by storm, but all genres of music. His music really crosses over to several genres not just country music. Those genres are rock, pop, rap and southern rock to just name a few. In 2023, his debut country album was released in ‘Whitsitt Chapel.’ He went on his first major tour last summer called the ‘Backyard Baptism Tour.’ For this tour, he upped the game by having two side thrusts that came out on each side of the stage. He also had a mini stage setup where he opened and closed the show. It was 9pm and the lights went off and it was showtime. One single spotlight shined on Jelly Roll as he made his way through the backstage area to the mini stage set up in the back of the arena. As he stood on the mini stage, he stopped to take in all the adoration of the fans before going into “I Am Not Okay.” What resembled a frame of a house was lowered while flames were on it. A cool effect that gave more of direct feeling to the song. Jelly Roll made his way back to the main stage to do the rest of his set. He had Alexandra Kay join him for the song “Friends in Low Places” that Garth Brooks made famous and the Shania Twain classic, “Man! I Feel Like a Woman” before she exited. The spirit of positivity continued as Jelly Roll dished out some more tunes including the fan favorite “I Need a Favor.” At one point, Jelly Roll had a message for the fans of Buffalo. He said, “Buffalo was one of the first cities that got behind me as an artist and me, my wife and 2 kids want to say thank you!” He also said “Believe in the power of love and power of change. I’m living proof it can be done.” He closed the set the same way he started it, by making his way back to the mini stage to sing “Save Me.” This time instead of the fire, rain came down over him as he sang the song. An amazing effect I never seen an artist do before.
A lot of thanks were given throughout the night. All the artists were thankful of the fans who came but the crowd was also thankful of a great night of music. It really was a night to reflect and be thankful of what you have. I sure walked away taking the messages that Jelly Roll gave to heart. I can’t wait to see what he has in store as a new album of his will drop on October 11, 2024.
Setlist:
I Am Not Okay
Halfway to Hell
Get By
Burning
Son of a Sinner
Friends in Low Places (DeWayne Blackwell cover) (with Alexandra Kay)
Man! I feel Like a Woman! (partial – with Alexandra Kay)
Good Riddance (Time of Your Life) (Greenday cover)
Lonely Road (MGK cover)
Creature/Same As*hole/ Fall in the Fall/Wild Ones
She
Liar
Bottle and Mary Jane
Need a Favor
Smoking Section (with Hylyte)
Heart of Stone
Encore:
Save Me
We would like to thank Alexa Johnson from Livenation for the credentials to review the show.
