Ashley McBryde took the stage with her rock-infused country anthems during the 2024 iHeartCountry Festival Presented by Capital One on Saturday night (May 4). The star-studded event returned to Moody Center in Austin, Texas. The iHeartCountry Festival quickly followed a moment McBryde said she nearly had to stop mid-performance.
The Arkansas-born Grand Ole Opry member launched her iHeartCountry Festival set with âBlackout Betty,â which appears on her 11-track project that released in September 2023, The Devil I Know. The album also included other songs McBryde performed on the Moody Center stage on Saturday night, including her heartfelt ballad âLight On In The Kitchenâ and the electrifying title track. McBryde also performed her single âOne Night Standards,â included on her 11-track album in April 2020, Never Will.
It was during another one of McBrydeâs career hits, however, that she said she nearly stopped her performance.
McBryde caught up with iHeartCountry on the red carpet before taking the stage at the festival, where she reflected on a tour highlight on Friday night (May 3) at Billy Bobâs Texas, hailed the worldâs largest honky tonk. McBryde said the energy of the crowd was unforgettable, and unlike any other time she took the legendary stage.
âLast night, we were at Billy Bobâs in Fort Worth,â McBryde said. âAnd every time you play Billy Bobâs is, of course, very special. But there was something in the room last night. They screamed so loud during âGirl Goinâ Nowhere,â [the title track of her 2018 studio album] I nearly had to stop the song. There was so much emotion in the room that I was just like, âthis is what itâs supposed to be like. Every time.ââ
Other artists in the lineup throughout the evening included Jason Aldean, Jelly Roll, Lady A, Riley Green, Old Dominion (with surprise special guest Ashley Cooke), Brothers Osborne, Walker Hayes and Keith Urban. It was all hosted again by iHeartRadioâs Bobby Bones. Watch some of the highlights from McBryde's performance here: