Country musician Blake Shelton’s performance at the Dee J. Kelly Alumni Center lawn was met with a strong student presence Thursday night, despite worries that not everyone with a wristband would be allowed onto the lawn.
Lines to enter the lawn stretched from outside the alumni center toward the freshman parking lot as early as 6 p.m.
Sophomore pre-major Alexis Crowley said she met people at the front of the line who arrived as early as 3:30 p.m. for their spots, and she expected lines to be long because of the concert’s new location.
“I understand they’re holding it [on the lawn] mainly because of the new stadium and it’s a great area…but I would have preferred it in the [Campus] Commons,” she said.
Sophomore political science major Michael Bentley stood near the end of the line as gates opened at 7 p.m. Bentley said he did not expect to get a spot on the lawn, but would wait until space was made available.
But when Shelton took the stage at 9 p.m., space was still available on the lawn, with students like sophomore sports broadcasting major Courtney Elizabeth Cheek choosing to watch the concert from the alumni center parking lot.
She said she was unsure about what the turnout would be for the concert because of the different rumors from students about how many people would be admitted to the lawn.
Cheek also expressed her preference for previous concerts held in the Commons because she said it had more of a “TCU feel.”
But the Horned Frog spirit spread throughout the concert when football coach Gary Patterson presented Shelton with his own personalized TCU jersey.
The concert was one of the first events as part of the Amon G. Carter Stadium grand opening celebration, with the festivities continuing at the football game against Grambling State on Saturday at 6 p.m.
