Kacey Musgraves: Beauty and Grace
Words by Liz Wyatt
Photos by Steve Satzberg
The CFG Bank Arena was filled with an ocean of cowboy hats, dotting the crowd like whitecaps on a windy day. Oh. Em. Gee. There were boots made for walkin’ everywhere you looked. Mullets may be back, America.
As the standing-room-only area in front of the stage filled for Kacey Musgraves and her Middle of Nowhere Tour on Sept. 5, couples held hands and swayed to the fiddle, sundresses flowing in the musical breeze as opener Flatland Cavalry sang, “My love for you goes on and on.”
Oh my, lead singer Cleto Cordero was winking and smiling at us with those magical dimples. What a curly-haired heartthrob — and really rocking that mullet. The band sang “Here Last Summer,” followed by “Strangers” and a new song featuring such excellent lead guitar that it could fit into almost any genre.
Next came a vibrant take on “Praise the Lord, I Saw the Light.” Then they dropped the mood down into something more reverent, with Cordero on acoustic guitar as the rest of the band joined him singing, “I saw the light, I saw the light.”
It was a lovely mix for a country show, with edgy guitar riffs quilted together with fiddles and the harmonies we’ve all loved for decades.
Watch Flatland Cavalry perform live at Stagecouch 2025 on YouTube:
There was quite a long wait for Miss Kacey to come onstage, but it was so worth it. What a charmer, appearing on the balcony behind the stage like a real-life Juliet looking for her Romeo.
Kacey has been singing traditional country songs since she was 8-years old, and her many years of performing would become evident as the night continued. The mellow beauty of her voice and melodies was juxtaposed with flames, raining rings of sparks, fireworks, and glitter balls all around her. (Explanation coming.)
Her fabulous songs “Everyone Wants to Be a Cowboy” and “Dry Spell” were up next. Haven’t we all been “lonely with a capital H”?
Kacey’s beautiful face appeared on a round screen nearly the size of the stage, showing off a blue star by her right eye and glitter on the other — Texas glamour at its finest. She told us to be ourselves, don’t be a$$hole$, and have a good time.
Amen to that. Let’s be the light.
The stage began rotating like a carousel as she sang “Merry Go ’Round,” followed by “Give Me Butterflies.” Phone flashlights throughout the arena looked like stars illuminating the darkness. Jaunty and happy, all nestled beneath our blanket of stars, the warm love of the crowd rang out as we sang along, filling the empty space until we all had butterflies in our tummies.
“In Abilene” was pulsing: “She’ll never leave Abilene.” “Back on the Wagon” had the whole crowd on their feet dancing.
Watch the official lyric video to “Back on the Wagon” by Kacey Musgraves on YouTube:
Next, she sang a song she recorded with Willie Nelson. I could hear the zydeco and taste East Texas in the music: “You think you know somebody, then they walk right out of the door. Did you ever call me baby? I thought you did from time to time.”
She sang out the lyrics: “Hell froze over. We love horses, have divorces, we both like to drink. Maybe we’re both more alike than you think.”
Next came “Hey Baby, Que Paso” and “You Came Along at the Right Time,” followed by “You Set My World on Fire”: “I know everything is gonna be alright. I know I’ve seen it all before, but seeing it through your eyes feels like paradise. You set my world on fire.”
Fireworks and sparklers flashed along the top of the circular stage during “The Loneliest Girl in the World.”
And that’s when a bit of publicity genius happened.
After a glitter-ball joke, a giant glitter disco scrotum dropped from the ceiling as she sang “Get a Little Rhinestoned,” reminiscent of “Time Marches On” and its classic theme, which she echoes elsewhere in her music. But I digress.
The disco balls contained a bench for Kacey, who sat down and floated toward the ceiling, suspended high above the arena from this disco-scrotum bench in the sky.
And then it started rotating.
Jaws dropped. Cameras rushed into the air to capture a photo or short video of this “viral in seconds” moment. What a story we all had for the water cooler the next day.
Ooohhhhh, then slow it down with “Mexico Honey.” Mmmmm. Mix it up with some “Tupelo Honey.” Yummy yum.
Watch the official music video for “Mexico Honey” by Kacey Musgraves on YouTube:
Kacey thanked us for buying tickets, merch and supporting her online. She said she loves real country songs about real life, giving a shout-out to outlaw country and Waylon and Willie. And when she mentioned Dolly, the crowd nearly roared the roof off.
She sang “Middle of Nowhere,” mentioning how we were all there together in the middle of nowhere.
“It’s a slow burn. Taking my time, let the world turn.”
An army of arms waved as flames rose high around the edge of the circular stage. Everything became mellow and easy as the crowd sang together, and like a tidal pull, we reached a high note as one. The note seemed to resonate inside us until it filled the entire arena.
Glittery confetti snow fell during “You can have your space, cowboy.”
Then came: “Damned if you do, damned if you don’t. Follow your arrow wherever it points.”
She ended the night with a marvelously vamped-up version of “All My Exes Live in Texas.”
What an exciting show: fire, sparks, disco glitter scrotums, flames, and confetti, all balanced by Kacey Musgraves’ unmistakable feminine beauty and grace.
We can’t wait for you to come back to town, Kacey!
Here are some photos of Kacey Musgraves performing live at CFG Bank Arena on Sept. 5, 2026. All pictures copyright and courtesy of Steve Satzberg.
Here are some photos of Flatland Cavalry performing live at CFG Bank Arena on Sept. 5, 2026. All pictures copyright and courtesy of Steve Satzberg.
