THE DRYES

Opry Plaza Summer Concert Series Powered by Whiskey Jam

Saturday August 10, 2024

@ Opry Plaza in Nashville, TN

(Review Written By: Jeffrey Kurtis)

Nashville’s music scene is very rich in its history while also continually advancing generation next with high profile stages and opportunities that fervently build the type of grassroot following to sustain careers.

For the second summer in a row, the iconic Grand Ole Opry and the innovative Whiskey Jam have partnered for the Opry Plaza summer concert series every weekend between Memorial Day and Labor Day, bringing a lineup of the hottest rising talent to a stage only a few hundred feet from the famed Opry House.

This year’s plaza parties have already included performances from the likes of Noah Hicks, The Woods, Charly McReynolds, Taylor Austin Dye, and on this night, The Dryes.

Husband and wife duo Derek and Katelyn (aka The Dryes) first came into our homes during the 22^nd season of NBC’s The Voice, but they’ve made tremendous career strides ever since. They’re resume boasts over 10 million global streams, breaking out with their songs “Dolly Would” and “House On Fire,” directly supporting Jo Dee Messina on her Heads Carolina, Tails California Tour, and releasing their latest EP, Raisin’ Beers & Hallelujah’s, which features both “Sawdust” and “Take Me Out.”

As the Opry ticket holders began to gather across the plaza, each next song that The Dryes performed continually pulled the intrigued concertgoers toward the plaza stage in what would become a brightly shining showcase of the duo’s signature harmonies, addictively catchy original music, and a snapshot of the influences that paved their way.

“Cheers to the Grand Ole Opry,” Derek toasted near the end of their set, humbly honoring the most iconic stage in country music just as the doors to the Opry House had officially opened for this night’s featured Grand Ole Opry performance.

Dripping a rock edge into the slap of swampiness, “Take Me Out” instantly ignited the crowd by allowing each of the two-some’s dynamic vocals to individually stand out on their own in the lead position through their respective verses while pumping the chorus in a blended harmony that induced the songs fist pumping, anthem-like aura, immediately highlighting the core essence of who The Dryes are.

Balancing pieces of their entire catalog throughout their 15-song set, Katelyn branded southern sass into “Bless Your Heart” as they then grabbed hold of a honky-tonk spirit that map dotted the back roads groove of “Sawdust” while keeping hips popping and heads bobbing across the plaza with “Take You Dancing.”

“This is my love letter to Dolly Parton,” Katelyn explained as a cheer radiated from the crowd at the mere mention of the icon’s name. “I always say that we gonna be friends one day…she just don’t know it yet,” she quipped with a drip of Southern honey in her voice as the two-stepping rhythm of “Dolly Would” ignited a hoedown like feel that led to a clap along moment that perfectly segued into a rousing fusion of “9 to 5” and “Islands in the Stream” that had everyone gleefully singing along.

As their current single “daydrinkin’” delivered good time vibes within a beach side washing of a cold concoction, their stellar cover selection not only brilliantly flashed an influence for their love of classic country music but embodied the full spirit of the Grand Ole Opry.

Taking on the male/female roles of Conway and Loretta’s “You’re The Reason Our Kids Are Ugly,” and those of Johnny and June on “Jackson,” Katelyn and Derek showed precise expertise in reading the atmosphere of crowd so as to place the right songs in the right moments so that they’d pull over the growing bustle of Opry goers.

However, with any show of this type where the artist is doing a bit of a balancing act by not necessarily playing for their own crowd but still needing to find ways to make a memorable mark, The Dryes absolutely did that with two very big standout moments which both anchored the latter part of their set.

After sharing a heart tugged personal story of her cousin recently losing his medical battle, Katelyn encouraged, “Life is crazy, it’s hard, but what is beautiful are the moments spent with family and knowing that God is with us through it all. Know that you are loved by Him!” quieting the otherwise rowdy crowd to an audible silence as the duo delivered an acoustic rendition of “Ain’t God Good,” lifting a beautifully crafted prayer of thanksgiving that inspirationally recognized the blessings He pours onto to us even when we’re facing our tougher life moments.

In an unplanned moment that diverted from their setlist, “YES” became a late injection that was dedicated to a fan who had driven up from Atlanta, her favorite song, but it was also gifted to everyone on hand through an appreciative gratefulness for being there to support them and independent music.

“House On Fire” naturally earned heavy cheers and a sing along moment, before the duo closed with “Raisin’ Beers & Halelujah’s,” raising a raucous toast to life and leaving an encouraging mark on the crowd with the say and repeat, back and forth, “God is good all the time and all the time God is good!”

Firty, sassy, down home, encouraging, inspirational, and rebel rousing at all the appropriate times, this 15-song, hour long performance was as much a showcase of Katelyn and Derek’s warm personalities as it was a display of their incredible musicianship. Teetering the mostly up-tempo set against the perfect placement of the right cover songs and heartstring tugged moments, their unapologetic love of country music’s foundations satisfied the crowd that situated on the plaza, amping their anticipation of things still to come as they made their way inside the Opry House.

FULL SET LIST

1) Take Me Out

2) Boondocks (Little Big Town cover)

3) Bless Your Heart

4) Sawdust

5) Pride & Joy (Stevie Ray Vaughn cover)

6) Dolly Would

7) 9 to 5/Islands in the Stream (Dolly Parton/Parton & Kenny Rogers cover)

8) You’re The Reason Our Kids Are Ugly (Conway Twitty & Loretta Lynn cover)

9) Take You Dancing

10) daydrinkin’

11) Ain’t God Good

12) YES

13) House On Fire

14) Jackson (Johnny & June cover)

15) Raisin’ Beers & Hallelujah’s