Walker Hayes, Brittney Spencer & more get all 'Fancy Like'

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This weekend’s photo roundup of West Michigan concerts zeroes in on a Grammy-nominated star, an emerging country artist, tributes to ABBA and The Beatles, and three compelling female singer-songwriters.

Capacity Country Crowd: Walker Hayes and band on stage Thursday. (Photo/Anthony Norkus)

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In the age of COVID, concert sellouts are no longer a done deal, no longer a sure thing, no longer a routine occurrence.

So when country star Walker Hayes filled Grand Rapids’ GLC Live at 20 Monroe to capacity on Thursday, it was an event worth celebrating, especially for fans of the artist’s “Country Stuff” (the title of his fifth EP and latest full-length album, which contains the No. 1 single and Grammy-nominated “Fancy Like”).

After Canadian singer-songwriter MacKenzie Porter opened the show, the bearded Hayes kicked off his set appropriately with “Drinkin’ Songs” before unleashing renditions of numerous singles along the way, including “U Gurl,” “AA,” “Don’t Let Her,” “90’s Country” and “Craig.”

The very same night, emerging Baltimore singer-songwriter Brittney Spencer unfurled her country-hued tunes for a small crowd at The Stache inside The Intersection as part of her “In a Perfect World” tour.

Listening Room Revelry: Patty PerShayla (Photo/Anthony Norkus)

Those shows offered just a taste of the weekend’s live music lineup:

• At noon Thursday, Grand Rapids’ Patty PerShayla and Serita’s Black Rose played WYCE’s “GR Live” at Listening Room, with PerShayla following that up at Listening Room with a full Friday night performance that featured an opening set from singer-songwriter Loren Johnson.

• After releasing its “Miracle on Funk Street” EP last year, Kansas electro-funk duo The Floozies brought the “Now That’s What I Call A Tour: Vol. 1” to The Intersection on Saturday night.

• With Grand Rapids’ Iron Well once again hosting live music, West Michigan’s uber-popular That Beatles Thing fired up fans on Saturday night with their engaging, harmony-laden tribute to the Fab Four.

• In Kalamazoo, it wasn’t The Beatles but a case of ABBA mania, literally. The Abba Mania tribute band from the United Kingdom rolled out some of the Swedish super-group’s biggest hits at Kalamazoo State Theatre on Saturday night, from “Dancing Queen” to “Waterloo” and more, complete with glittery outfits and high-heeled boots.

Browse the photo galleries below.

PHOTO GALLERY: Walker Hayes, Mackenzie Porter at GLC Live at 20 Monroe
Photos by Anthony Norkus