Zach Top performs at the Ryman Auditorium. Photo: Citizen Kane Wayne
It’s no secret that Zach Top, the Washington state native whose sound harkens back to the best of ’80s and ’90s country, has been turning heads since his breakout last year.
His rise has been meteoric. His debut album, Cold Beer & Country Music, released last spring via independent label Leo33, racked up over 3.5 million streams in its first week and earned widespread acclaim. His hit “I Never Lie” is climbing toward the top 10 at country radio, and his headline “Cold Beer & Country Music Tour” sold out within hours. Add in a New Artist of the Year nomination at the 58th CMA Awards and a Discovery Artist of the Year win at the 2024 MusicRow Awards, and it’s clear Top is leading country music’s new traditionalist revival.
This weekend, he took the stage for two sold-out shows at the Ryman Auditorium, met by an electric crowd eager for steel guitar, country gold songwriting and vintage style. Jake Worthington opened Friday (Feb. 28), with Cole Goodwin handling Saturday (March 1), proving that Top’s peers share his commitment to making traditional country music mainstream again.
Zach Top and Jake Worthington perform at the Ryman Auditorium. Photo: Citizen Kane Wayne
On Friday night, Worthington kicked things off with his signature country-as-cornbread charm, debuting his upcoming single, “I’m The One” featuring Marty Stuart (out March 14), alongside crowd-pleasers like “State You Left Me In” and “Hello Shitty Day.” He wrapped his set with a one-two punch of George Jones classics, “The Grand Tour” and “White Lightning,” priming the audience for Top’s arrival.
When Top hit the stage in a striped button-down tucked into jeans, topped with a cowboy hat and boots, the Ryman roared. Most of the audience stayed on their feet all night.
He opened with “Sounds Like the Radio” and “I Don’t Mind” before launching into his first of many covers, George Jones—and George Strait’s—“Love Bug.” A well-timed pulse check got the crowd riled up for “Beer for Breakfast,” before he brought them back down to sway along to “Lonely for Long” and “Dirt Turns to Gold.”
With his signature charm, he tossed a wink to the crowd during “Ain’t That a Heartbreak,” and had the women in the audience swooning with “There’s the Sun.” A Merle Haggard classic, “Ramblin’ Fever,” came next.
Then, a curveball: Top and his exceptional band’s performance of “The Kinda Woman I Like” turned into The Commodores‘ “Brick House,” before he shared that they were venturing into a bluegrass section, to highlight the singer-songwriters roots in the genre.
“‘Brick House’ to bluegrass, just how Bill Monroe intended it,” Top joked.
He leaned into the genre with a rootsy rendition of his own “World Gone Wrong,” followed by Ricky Skaggs’ “Don’t Cheat in Our Hometown” and Randy Travis’ “If I Didn’t Have You.” Sending the band off, he performed “Kentucky Bluebird” solo, earning rousing approval.
The energy surged again with fan-favorite “Bad Luck,” and bandmate Cheyenne Dalton took center stage for a fiery rendition of Sara Evans’ “Suds in the Bucket.”
Next up, the crowd—especially the women—erupted for Top’s cheating song “Use Me.” When he sang, “Tell me you love me,” the entire room shouted back, “I love you!”
After a rollicking take on Sammy Kershaw’s “Cadillac Style,” Top welcomed Worthington back for a duet on “Murder on Music Row.” Watching two young artists committed to making traditional country cool again was a moment that felt like history in the making. They grinned at each other and as the audience ate it up.
As the night wound down, he introduced his band with “Justa Jonesin’” before diving into his biggest hits. When the first notes of “I Never Lie” rang out, the crowd blew the roof off the Ryman, making for a special moment as Top’s potential first chart-topper took center stage. He rode that energy through “Things to Do” before closing with the anthemic title track, “Cold Beer & Country Music.”
Top’s “Cold Beer & Country Music Tour” rolls on this weekend in Atlanta, with additional support slots for Alan Jackson and Dierks Bentley throughout the year. With performances like this, it’s clear that Zach Top isn’t just reviving traditional country—he’s making it the hottest thing in town.
LB Cantrell is Editor/Director of Operations at MusicRow magazine, where she oversees, manages and executes all company operations. LB oversees all MusicRow-related content, including the publication’s six annual print issues and online news. She is a Georgia native and a graduate of the Recording Industry Management program at Middle Tennessee State University.