Stagecoach: Luke Bryan closes day one with hits and covers, Bud Light controversy looms

If anyone can successfully close a show in the desert on the opening day of the Stagecoach Festival is Luke Bryan, who has been playing at the festival for over a dozen years and previously headlined in 2014, 2016 and 2019.

Friday night he kicked off with a song that might as well have been written for the occasion, "I Don't Want This Night To End," and played a set consisting of nearly all of his hits and a few surprise covers. In addition to his many party anthems — "Drink a Beer," "Roller Coaster," Crash My Party” and “Play it Again” followed one another – he also sprinkled in covers of “Where the Green Grass Grows” by Tim McGraw” and “Neon Moon” by Brooks and Dunn.

As festival-goers danced the night away, many were clearly wondering if maybe a guest or two would come out – especially since Brooks and Dunn are willing to pay for their own set on Sunday night. But no luck. Bryan took a momentary break before closing the set with a cover of Bon Jovi's "Livin' on a Prayer," and there seemed to be a touch of disappointment among the crowd who had been excited about possibly seeing a Jon Bon Jovi cameo, a la Axl Rose's appearance on Carrie Underwood's headlining show last year.

Jody Domingue Jody Domingue

Nevertheless, the show came out on top, with Bryan grabbing a Marines jersey from a member of the audience and proudly wear it for his last song, which closed the festival a few minutes before midnight - the curfew of the park.

While Bryan was a model headliner to close out the evening, the day was hectic before as a whole.

Jon Pardi played the "Mane" (main) scene just before Bryan and was joined by the chef Guy Fieri, who has his own cooking stage at the festival for demos, to bring a special surprise to the "Dirt on My Boots" singer. Fieri tossed it to the monitors to introduce a virtual Alan Jackson, who invited Pardi to become the newest member of the Grand Ole Opry. Opry Vice President and Executive Producer Dan Rogers then joined Pardi onstage with the official offer. "Not only are you the first person invited to be an Opry member here at Stagecoach, but this guy is the first native Californian to be a member of the Grand Ole Opry," he said.

Stagecoach-style, Pardi celebrated the success with a shot of tequila before thanking everyone world for this opportunity.

Other Friday highlights include Melissa Etheridge, who performed her hits "Come to My Window" and "I'm the Only One" to thousands of fans screaming every word. The two-time Grammy winner's stellar voice wasn't the only thing reminding the crowd why she's still such an icon; she also played harmonica at one point and went completely wild in several guitar solos.