It's always hard for me to imagine country music outside of the U.S. Perhaps it's the dumb American in me but the genre only exists spiritually down south. All the visions of cowboys and farmland and westerns don't exactly add up in Australia or England. However, all signs point to these country artists having the time of their lives when they go out and perform abroad. Hell, even Darius Rucker decided to pack his bags and start living there. This is true for Lainey Wilson as well, who is giving her take on performing across the pond.
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Recently, Wilson sat down for an interview in the United Kingdom, promoting the European leg of her tour. There, she opens up about how they differ from the typical American crowds. "It's unreal. I know like all of the artists probably say a similar thing, but it really is true that the listeners here are a little bit different. It seems like they kind of sit on the edge of their seat and lean in and listen," Lainey says. I'm a songwriter before I'm an artist, and I take a lot of pride in my storytelling, and it just feels like they really care about the story. It's very special."
Lainey Wilson Lauds The European Crowds at Her Shows
Additionally, Wilson recalls her first time performing overseas and the anxiety she felt beforehand. Admittedly, she believed that no one would care because no would knew her. However, it was quite the opposite experience. Apparently, they showed her more love in London than she ever did back in the States. "2018 was the first time I got to come over here, and it was just me and guitar," Lainey recalls. "I was like, 'Okay, they are not going to know me from Adam.' But they were so excited that country music was coming over here that they went and learned everything that I had ever put out.
"I'll never forget. I was at Bush Hall in London, and I could hear a pin drop, and then all of a sudden, I heard people singing back to me. That was the very first time I ever heard people singing my music back to me. So they caught on here first before I had fans at home," Lainey adds.
