Tucker Wetmore attracts over 7,000 country fans in San Diego

Over 7,000 San Diego country music fans showed out on Thursday, August 20th, selling out Gallagher Square at Petco Park wearing their boots, cowboy hats, and finest country couture to support rising star Tucker Wetmore. The Brunette World Tour is Wetmore’s first headlining run, just two years from turning TikTok fame into independent hit-making success. Early on, he asked for the house lights to be turned up on the crowd so that he could pause and take them all in, stating this was his biggest show to date and expressing how much the night meant to him.

Self-described “beach girl” Ashley Anne opened the show.

After moving from Virginia Beach to Nashville, Ashley Anne has gained recent attention with her catchy songs and smooth vocal delivery. Like many of her generation, she sings from the heart, sharing all of her feelings and experiences as a way of healing and growing. She took the stage as if she had spent the day in Ocean Beach, barefoot and wearing a bikini top, with leather shorts and a flowing cover-up.

William Beckmann is still a young man, but has an old soul. Born on the Texas border, Beckmann took the stage next with his curated sound reminiscent of Elvis and Johnny Cash, with a little Mariachi thrown in. Northern Mexican music is what he grew up on. He sings in both English and Spanish, with a deep bass voice that comforts the listener. As folks showed up, filling the stage and hill areas to capacity, they seemed to be pleased with discovering this modern take on classic outlaw country. Truly, Beckmann’s songs could support a Robert Rodriguez film; some have already appeared on the Landman soundtrack!

As night descended and the moon rose behind the stage, Tucker Wetmore’s band filled in.

With a rocking musical introduction amidst flashing lights, Wetmore was revealed via a house door, garnering a thunderous welcome. He proceeded to sing and dance his way across the stage, strutting up and down the catwalk. The primarily female crowd could not get enough of him, singing along and screaming at Wetmore’s every wink and wiggle.

As his set progressed, Tucker Wetmore began to notice several signs in the crowd and began to engage with some of his youngest supporters. One 6-year-old (conveniently also named Tucker) was at his first concert; Wetmore happily signed a cowboy hat for his namesake. A 12-year-old girl was celebrating her birthday and everyone wished her a happy one! Wetmore then shared a story about a young girl named Aubrey he had met before the show who has been fighting cancer. He dedicated “Yours”, a new song from his recently released Sunburn Mixtape EP, to her during his campfire acoustic set. 

There were many points in the performance where Wetmore took time to acknowledge and thank his fans — his emotions clearly on display. At one point, he stopped singing, crouched down, and just soaked in his words being sung back to him. He shared that “concerts make you feel good, make you feel like yourself. You came here for live music and live music is what you’re gonna get” before shouting “we got any Journey fans?!”

He then showed off his piano skills, playing Journey’s “Faithfully” with full band.

Tucker and his band also played medleys of several classics throughout the night, including “I Don’t Want To Be / This Love / Drops of Jupiter” and “Keep Your Hands to Yourself / All My Rowdy Friends Are Coming Over Tonight / I Like It, I Love It”, showing their rock and country influences.

After the 90-minute set, wearing a custom San Diego Padres jersey, Tucker Wetmore delivered his biggest songs — “Bad Luck Looks Good On Me”, “Wind Up Missin’ You”, and (of course) “Brunette”. The wardrobe change was a nod of appreciation for the city that let him play one of the biggest shows of his life. He took a moment to express his love of music and performance and the reason behind it all: “God is good all the time. I wake up every day and breathe – that’s God. I’m just a man, just a dude, nothing special about me.” Some fans were not reading the room and continued to yell for him to “take it off”. He cleverly replied with “I’m talking about God and you’re asking me to take my shirt off? No. It’s not gonna happen.”

After a full headlining set, Tucker Wetmore somehow left everyone wanting more. He promised to come back to San Diego and there is no doubt that San Diego will be back to see him when he does.

Photography by Johnnie “Crow” Vrana

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