At least he’s singing it with his chest.
Riley Green fans need to brush up on their song knowledge, apparently. This week, Riley Green played the iconic star-shaped stage at RODEOHOUSTON. Each night of the massive rodeo is held at NRG Stadium, which can hold up to 72,000 patrons. After the rodeo events, the real fun begins, and a massive artist takes the stage for a Texas-sized concert.
This year’s lineup includes performances from Reba, Riley Green, Zach Top, Charley Crockett, Post Malone, Brooks & Dunn, and more. While the rodeo is the main event, we’d be lying if we said that some attendees don’t plan the day they go around what artist is performing, and Riley Green’s performance drew a significant crowd.
The Alabama native loved the energy in NRG Stadium, playing a brand new song for the first time.
“I always thought my daddy was a cowboy in a way. I always thought my grandaddy was a cowboy. Anybody that worked hard, used their hands, wasn’t scared to say what they believe and stand up for what they believe was a cowboy to me.
So I wrote this song. This is my first time playing this song. I hope y’all like it. It’s called ‘Cowboys As It Gets.’”
@tayfrazierrr When @Riley Green hits ya with a brand spankin’ new song at Rodeo Houston… 👀🥰 We love it. #rileygreen #houstonrodeo #houston #hlsr #rodeo #alabama ♬ original sound – tayfrazierrr
That moment from his setlist quickly went viral, but another moment from later in the setlist is also going viral. For his second-to-last song of the night, Green played his moving track, “I Wish Grandpas Never Died.” The track that appeared on his 2019 album, Different ‘Round Here, is a fan favorite because it’s a deeply moving song.
To many, the idea of grandparents never dying is something everyone can relate to, but outside of that, Green ensured there was a line that anyone could resonate with throughout the song. Making it deeply nostalgic in total.
“That was one of those songs that just kind of came, ya know I wrote it by myself in about 45 minutes. I think I had the idea for a while after my granddaddy passed away… it was one of those songs that was a little tough to write… you’re talking about some pretty big things.
Wishing everybody overseas would make it home… you kind of have to top yourself as the song goes along. There’s a lot of songs that talk about your grandpa, and I didn’t want to write a song that was about my grandpa. I kind of wanted to write it from the stance of like, these are some values my granddaddy taught me…
And the best thing about that song is what you just said, people have a line that does something to ‘em.”
Since its release, it’s been a favorite track in his catalog. Because country listeners love this song, it was shocking to some audience members when the stadium was not screaming the lyrics to this song with their chests during the performance. One Houston woman went viral for capturing her husband’s anger when the crowd was silent during the song.
“When only 35% of NRG knew the words to ‘I Wish Grandpas Never Died.’ My husband was extremely disappointed.”
The man looks around his section, sees a lack of mouths moving, and is stunned.
“Are you f**king sh*tting me?”
His wife laughed at his anger, and he made sure to sing the last words of the chorus with his chest to compensate for the lack of voices in their section. Riley Green even invited the audience to help him by singing a few lines of the song and joking with the crowd about their delivery.
“Y’all got beat by a mile.”
While I admit I hear some voices from this video, those at the performance were quick to chime in, and they also felt like the crowd was slacking when it came to singing along with Green.
“Majority of the stadium left right before he played this song.”
“I busted out laughing when he said we got beat by a mile.”
“I sat there sobbing, and everyone around me looked so lost…”
“Majority of the people around us didn’t know HALF of the songs like huhhhh?”
“Felt like I was the only one singing.”
“I was so disappointed and ‘Georgia time!’ I was like, y’all, come onnnn.”
Check it out.
@michaela_cink @Riley Green said it himself we got beat by a mile 😂🤠 #countrymusic #rodeohouston #rodeo #rileygreen #iwishgranpasneverdied #livemusic #pov #husbandsoftiktok #yeehaw ♬ I Wish Grandpas Never Died – Riley Green
The creator of this viral video sang the words with her husband, and heartbreakingly, they lost her husband’s grandfather shortly after the performance. She shared with Whiskey Riff that he passed away less than 24 hours after capturing the video. She felt like the timing of it all was crazy timing.
Once the video gained traction on social media, she also posted gut-wrenching news in the comments.
“My husband’s grandpa passed away less than 24 hrs after posting this. I truly wish grandpas never died. He was a great man and will be very missed.”
Hug your grandparents extra tight while you can.
