Paisley released his debut album, ‘Who Needs Pictures’, in 1999, at the age of 26. If that sounds young by general standards, Paisley must already have felt ancient by that age, at least in terms of how long his musical life had been going on; he’d been playing country music, in one form or another, pretty much all his life, from his early days singing at family parties to being picked up as a weekly performer on local radio in his teens.
Back then, he could only really have dreamed about what was to come; he can now lay claim to having sold in excess of twelve million records worldwide, with three Grammy Awards to his name, two American Music Awards, and the ultimate honour of American country music having been bestowed upon him – he was inducted as a member of the Grand Ole Opry in 2001 – the youngest member ever to join. Paisley continues to tour and record, with his frequent humorous references to popular culture in his lyrics having become his calling card over the years; not to mention, of course, his iconic cowboy hat, a staple of his live performances. He’s released more than ten studio albums, including his own Christmas record.
I saw Brad Paisley for the first time in May 2013 at PNC Arts Center. I had wanted to see him for quite some time and was thrilled when I found out he was kicking off the Country Megaticket Series at PNC. The concert was fantastic. We had lower right side orchestra seating.We were towards the back of the section but the stage had a semi-circle area in the middle of the orchestra section so Brad Paisley was actually quite a bit closer to us throughout the concert. He is a great entertainer and a fantastic singer. I loved that he mixed his older hits with his new album, especially when he played "He Didn't Have To Be," a song he wrote for his song co-writer and the guy's stepson and the first song that turned me onto Brad Paisley back in the 90s. There was also a point in the concert where he gifted one of his guitars to a young fan in front of the stage. And later he traveled up through the crowd to play behind us for the people out on the lawn. He was so involved with the audience and so appreciative, it was one of the best concerts I have ever seen and certainly an amazing first time seeing him. And his performance of "Remind Me" with Carrie Underwood's hologram was really neat to see too. I highly recommend seeing Brad Paisley in concert! You will not be disappointed!
megan-timmins
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