A sea of flashing camera lights and raucous cheers greeted Grapevine-born artist Post Malone, as he took the stage Friday night for a sold-out concert at Arlington’s AT&T Stadium.
The rapper-turned-country darling strutted down an elongated runway, repping his hometown in a snug Brandon Aubrey Cowboys jersey.
At his back, a neon-cut out reading “Posty Co.” flashed like the entrance to a honkytonk. Flames billowed into the air – bringing a shock of heat into sections far from the stage – as Malone performed “Texas Tea” and “Wow.”
He paused to catch his breath after the opening sequence with his mouth agape – grillz on display – as he peered into the crowd. In a brief, expletives-laden speech, he gushed about being the stadium’s headliner.
“Cut the music real quick,” he said. He looked teary-eyed, thanking the audience for their support.
“Ladies and gentleman, my name is Austin Richard Post. I came here to play some s—ty songs and f—ing party while we do it,” he continued. “It feels so good to be back home.”
His dad, a former 14-year employee at AT&T stadium, also joined him briefly on stage later to convey his pride (the elder Post gave the Cowboys a shout-out much to the audience’s delight).
It’s been nearly a decade since Malone was propelled from Soundcloud obscurity into the public eye after his viral hit “White Iverson.” In the ensuing years, he has been a musical chameleon, deftly gliding from hip-hop fame to pop glory and now country stardom.
The tour stop was in support of his 2024 country crossover album F-1 Trillion, a project that Nashville welcomed with open arms, evident by features from the genre’s luminaries Blake Shelton and Dolly Parton.
Early into his set, Malone said he would play a lot of “old songs.”
But, perhaps in a nod to his newfound fanbase, an audience that sported cowboy boots with Western hats and drank foamy beer, some of his rap and pop singles were countrified, so to say.
The chorus of “White Iverson,” for example, had its trap beat substituted for a stripped back arrangement with the live band. Meanwhile, a bluesy wailing guitar could be heard during “Circles.”
Malone’s genre-hopping and recent foray into country may muddle a neat categorization of his fanbase. There were Gen-Zers and millennials, couples and families, tattoo-covered fans and other sans the skin art.
One throughline, though, was how many had been loyal listeners since the start of his career.
The Arlington show was the fourth Malone concert Virginia native Jamelle Houchens, 28, had seen. From Stoney to Beerbongs and Bentleys, and now F-1 Trillion, “personally, I don’t think any album has a skip,” he said, nearby a concession stand.
“I’ve never really listened to country until now,” he added. His end-of-the-year data dump Spotify Wrapped listed country as his top genre, which he attributes to time spent streaming Malone’s music.
Garland native Elizabeth Arnold, 39, stood in one of several long lines to buy concert merchandise, although she and her friends were already matching in pink promotional T-shirts.
Malone’s music is the perfect bridge between hip-hop and country music, she said. He makes the latter genre “interesting again,” she added. Country music should be about heart and that’s what Malone brings, according to Arnold.
Malone, whose words are often abutted with Southern formalities (sir and ma’am, ladies and gentleman), is also widely perceived as an affable sweetheart.
“He’s super quirky and he’s not shy about it. I mean you just watch him dance and it’s just hilarious,” said Isabelle Foley, 27, Houchens’ girlfriend.
Waxahachie resident Jessica Thomas, 48, described Malone as “authentic.”
“Even if he’s singing country or rap or a ballad, he’s just so into it,” she said.
Her 18-year-old daughter Kyla Monroe chimed in. “He’s so truly himself … It’s so appealing; it draws you in.”
“He’s a hometown hero, so of course, we want him back to see him,” Thomas said.
Halfway through Malone’s show, tourmate Jelly Roll, who had performed a gospel-inflected set earlier, joined the stage for a duet of their single “Losers.” They sang about forging community at the fringes – where the “outcasts” and losers lay.
But a sold-out hometown stop and thousands of adoring fans made Malone, certainly on this night, a winner.
