Copyright M Live Michigan
ANN ARBOR, MI — Patrick Mason is looking forward to another concert at the Big House. But Mason, 20, of Lake St. Clair is not ecstatic about the artist, Morgan Wallen. “I would quite frankly rather kick my big toe to a wall 30 times than listen to country music,” said Mason, a junior at the University of Michigan. Wallen will headline Michigan Stadium’s second-ever concert July 24-25 as part of his “Still the Problem” tour, Wallen announced Thursday, Oct. 30. He will visit over 10 cities across the country with special guests. Fellow country musicians Thomas Rhett and HARDY will also perform, Rhett on July 24 and HARDY on July 25. Country stars Hudson Westbrook and Blake Whiten are to accompany Wallen on stage both nights at Michigan Stadium. Community reactions in Ann Arbor are mixed, but many welcome big acts at the Big House. “It’s probably good for the school, also good for revenue,” Mason said. “Good opportunity for the university, I’m sure a lot of people will enjoy it.” Gabrielle Babiarz, 18, of Howell said she is excited for Wallen, a two-time Grammy-nominated artist. “I know a couple of his songs,” said Babiarz, a UM freshman. “I’m excited that I can go since it’s in the summer and I only live 30 minutes away.” For her, it’s all about the concert-going experience. She went to the Zach Bryan and John Mayer show Sept. 27 at Michigan Stadium. More than 112,000 people, a record number, attended the concert, the first at the Big House. “The crowd size makes it more fun and more likely, it’s also a good use of the space,” Babiarz said. Stewart Beal, president of Beal Properties, LLC and Beal Construction Services, Inc., shared his enthusiasm on social media. “I love how the team at the University of Michigan is bringing the biggest acts right to Ann Arbor!” Beal, 42, wrote on Facebook. Others are more hesitant. Sarah Penrose, a first-year master’s student at UM, said she does not like Wallen as an artist or person, citing his previous scandals and offensive remarks. “I just don’t want to support someone that is problematic in that way,” Penrose, 22, of Ann Arbor said. More than 400 radio playlists removed Wallen in 2021 after a video emerged of him using a racial slur. He later apologized. A year earlier, Saturday Night Live canceled Wallen’s scheduled appearance in 2020 because videos surfaced of Wallen violating COVID protocols at a crowded bar, and last year, he pleaded guilty to reckless endangerment after he threw a chair from the roof of a Nashville bar. Penrose said she too does not like country music and if she could choose to bring an artist to the Big House, she would select a mainstream pop or indie folk music performer. Jay Sarkar, a longtime Ann Arbor resident who graduated from UM in 2014, also disapproves of the university welcoming Wallen to Michigan Stadium because of his previous rhetoric. “He has a pattern of racism and other problematic behaviors (throwing a chair off the roof of a Nashville bar) that have see(n) him disinvited from SNL and other major headlining events, why should he get to come to Michigan stadium?” Sarkar, 34, said. He said the concert will generate a lot of money for Michigan student-athletes but wishes Michigan Athletics “would try a non-country artist.” Despite her opposition to Wallen, Penrose said Michigan stadium is a suitable concert venue because of its large capacity. Local radio personality Matthew Altruda, who hosts “Tree Town Sound” on Ann Arbor’s 107.1, said Wallen’s upcoming performances will be “amazing for Ann Arbor businesses.” “Restaurant, local businesses, and the end of July, August is extremely difficult for businesses in this city and having 100,000+ people show up for multiple days is really going to save a ton of people’s bottom line,” Altruda said. He said it makes sense for the country’s largest stadium to have the largest concerts. Although he is not a Wallen music fan, Altruda said Wallen is “going to check a lot of boxes with (what) the university is looking for.” Jeff Pfeiffer, a spokesperson for the bus service TheRide, wrote he expects a different but large crowd for the Wallen concert, similar to the Zach Bryan and John Mayer concert in September. “Ann Arbor usually has more of an indie/alt-college-town vibe, so when big country acts come through, you get this fun culture mix,” Pfeiffer wrote. “With Zach Bryan, a lot of locals were like ‘Who?’” He said “the night before and day of the (Zach Bryan) show turned into one of the most electric atmospheres I’ve seen here.” “I’m sure it’ll be a fantastic couple of shows, and it’s exciting to see major artists come to Ann Arbor,“ Pfeiffer wrote. ”I’m equally interested to see the townie–visitor interactions.”
