Granger Smith has returned to the stage after months of cancelled shows due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Alongside his full band, Smith performed for fans in Tyler, Texas on Friday (June 12).
"This pic was from last night," Smith captioned a new photo shared on Instagram. “Not 6 months ago, not pre-shutdown…it was last night in East Texas. There were rules, and everyone followed them. It felt normal and normal feels really good. I’m posting this to try and spread some good news to those that might be searching for it…normal is making a comeback! And we’ll be seeing YOU soon!"
This show was Smith's first in nearly 100 days since the quarantine was put into effect. He performed fan-favorites including "When The Good Guys Win," "Backroad Song," "If The Boot Fits," "Happens Like That" and more. Of course, Earl Dibbles Jr. also made an appearance for "Don’t Tread On Me," "The Country Boy Song" and "Merica."
Smith is currently set to headline an Independence Day concert at Dell Diamond in Round Rock, Texas. The show will host a 50% capacity crowd and conclude with a fireworks show.
From the start of quarantine, Smith has been open with fans on social media and through his family's YouTube channel, The Smiths, about how he's doing without live shows. Just several days following the nationwide lockdown, Smith shared a message admitting he felt "useless" about the entire situation.
“Touring is my life and it has been for a long time. This is not the ole days of Garth Brooks selling all these records and making money, we as musicians, we’ve made money for a long time solely on touring, ticket sales because no one buys albums and that kind of stuff anymore. We’ve accepted that our new way of life is selling tickets,” he explained. “Every time we put out songs, every time we put out music, every time we get streams or plays on the radio, that’s all really just an advertisement so that you guys can buy tickets to our concerts. And we are just not set up to skip out on that, we’re not set up to say we can go a few months and just not tour and just sell records, it’s not that way, I mean it’s called there’s no more money left after that.”
He continued on in his message to share how worried he was for his band and crew and the music industry in general during this tough time.
“What about all my guys, what about all my crew, what about all of my band, those guys are on salary," he added. "Those guys are depending on this, they’re depending on my touring company to make money so that it pays all of these salaries and it pays all the diesel and it trickles down."
Photo: Getty Images