On Friday, February 16th, I attended Wyatt Flores’ show at Cain’s Ballroom in Tulsa, Oklahoma. This show was opened by Evan Honer and Kat Hasty which made for, in my opinion, the perfect lineup. I had a wonderful experience at this show and, in this blog, I’d like to share some of it with you.
Not only did I get to experience this amazing concert, but I also got to share this experience and make unforgettable memories with some of my favorite people. I was fortunate enough to be able to attend this concert with some of my long-distance best friends. Prior to this trip to Tulsa, it had been many months since I had last seen them.
My friends and I started planning this trip back in September on the day that this concert was announced. We all bought tickets practically the minute the presale started and, if I recall correctly, we actually booked our Airbnb on that same day. Obviously, we were not messing around about this trip.
Evan Honer was first to take the stage and, I have to say, he was who I was most excited to see perform that night. Now, don’t get me wrong, I love Kat Hasty and Wyatt Flores, and I was ecstatic to see them perform as well but, up until this night, Evan was the only one out of the three who I had yet to see perform live.
I have been listening to Evan Honer since June 2022 and, over this time, he has become one of my favorite artists. At this show, I knew the words to almost every song he played. The only songs I didn’t know the words to were the unreleased, new songs he played.
Evan and his band sounded amazing together. They played a great, high-energy set that seemed to effectively capture and maintain the crowd’s attention. There is no doubt in my mind that Evan gained many new listeners from his performance that night at Cain’s. Not only was Evan’s set engaging, but it also effectively showed the breadth of Evan and his band’s talents.
My favorite part of Evan’s set was when he played his song, ‘idk shit about cars’. This song is so fun to experience live, especially when you’re with some of your best friends (and when this song is one of your friend's favorite songs). It’s just one of those songs that makes you want to jump around. I actually got accidentally punched in the mouth during this song by one of my friends but I think that makes the story even better.
Kat Hasty was next to take the Cain’s Ballroom stage. She played a great set that I wished would never end. I could listen to Kat play all day, every day. She is such a talented musician and there are so many songs of hers that mean a great deal to me. This concert was my second time seeing Kat perform live; my first time seeing Kat was back in September 2022 at Born & Raised Music Festival.
Throughout her set, Kat shared stories about her life and career which helped us listeners to understand her and her music on an even deeper level. She even shared part of the story of how she broke up the band.
My favorite part of Kat’s set was when she played her song, ‘He Belongs to the Night’. Kat and her band truly rocked out to this song and it sounded so different from the studio recording in the best possible way.
Not only is Kat an extremely talented musician, but she is also a kind soul who truly cares for her fans. This was evident that night when a fan needed help in the crowd. As soon as Kat realized someone needed help, she stopped and helped them to get the medical attention they needed. (Also, to the people in the crowd who were singing ‘Revival’ by Zach Bryan during this moment… why… just why?)
I was also fortunate enough to be able to meet Kat at this show. My best friend Katie and I both got to meet her and were able to talk with her for a bit. Kat was so sweet and kind to the both of us and we both felt so honored to have met her.
Wyatt Flores, the headlining act, was next to take the stage. Wyatt and his band played an amazing, captivating set. His set had something for everyone from fun, upbeat songs like ‘Wildcat’ and ‘Ain’t Proud’ to slower, emotional songs like ‘Astronaut’ and his cover of ‘How To Save a Life’. However, for most of us there, I think we enjoyed every single moment of his set.
While Wyatt played many of his released and popular songs, he played some unreleased music as well. After hearing these unreleased songs live, I am very eager for them to come out. Definitely keep your eye and ear on Wyatt, he’s got even more great music to come.
As some of you may already know, it is quite rare that Cain’s ballroom will use their disco ball during concerts. One of my friends who has been to many shows at Cain’s said that he has only seen the disco ball used a handful of times.
So when the disco ball lit up while Wyatt sang ‘Astronaut’, the crowd went absolutely wild. ‘Astronaut’ is one of my favorite Wyatt songs and having the disco ball lit up made the moment even more special. This was one of my favorite moments of the entire night.
There were multiple instances during his set where Wyatt thanked us all for being there. It was evident that night that Wyatt is so truly thankful for his fans and their support. Near the end of his set, he even got teary-eyed speaking about how he sold out Cain’s Ballroom for his first time playing a headlining show there.
Throughout his set that night, Wyatt was open about mental health and his own current struggles with it. It was evident that many of his fans were concerned for him and cared about him. I think I can speak for many of us fans that we are honored that Wyatt is able to open up to his fans and share his struggles with us.
In the days following this show, Wyatt announced that he was canceling and postponing some of his upcoming shows so that he could focus on his mental health. I respect and applaud Wyatt’s decision to do so. No show is more important than a musician’s health and safety and this always includes mental health.
This was truly an unforgettable night. Evan, Kat, and Wyatt all played beautiful, breathtaking sets that I wish I could go back and experience over and over again. I also feel so blessed to have been able to attend this show and experience this night with some of my closest friends and favorite people.
This show was my first time at Cain’s Ballroom and I absolutely loved my experience. It is such a beautiful venue that holds so much music history. I hope to return to this venue, preferably sooner rather than later. If you ever have the opportunity to catch a show at Cain’s or just visit the historical venue, I highly suggest that you take it.
If you’re interested in discovering more about the artists discussed in this article you can check them out on Instagram: Evan Honer / Kat Hasty / Wyatt Flores.
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