Eric Church at American Family Field: What you need to know before the Milwaukee concert

For just the second time in his career, country superstar Eric Church is gearing up to headline a stadium concert — and it's happening at American Family Field on May 28, a one-off show dubbed "One Hell of a Night in Milwaukee."

If it feels like the Milwaukee Brewers ballpark just hosted a major country music stadium concert for 40,000 people, that's because it did. Kenny Chesney was just there May 14 for a show that had been postponed from 2020. This is the first month with two major stadium concerts in Milwaukee since the Rolling Stones and Pink Floyd both headlined County Stadium in June 1975.

If you went to Chesney's show, some of the same guidelines apply, but there are some different circumstances. Here's everything you need to know.

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Arrive early (but not as early as Chesney)

Traffic getting into Chesney's Milwaukee show May 14 wasn't too bad, slowing to a relatively brief crawl as it usually does once you reach the line for parking. (Getting out, though, was a bear.) That Church's show, too, is on a Saturday should help, traffic-wise, and people are going to show up early to tailgate, too. Just don't show up too early — parking lots don't open until 4 p.m., two hours later than they did for Chesney, with Church's show also starting two hours later, at 7 p.m. The gates to get into the stadium open at 6 p.m.

Pay for parking in advance to save some money. How much does it cost, including preferred parking?

People who pay for parking in advance — highly recommended by the Brewers, to ensure a spot — will save some money. It's $25 in advance for general parking, $40 for preferred parking closer to the stadium. Otherwise, you'll pay $35 for general parking on-site, $50 for preferred parking.

Skip driving, but brace yourselves for long ride-share lines

The Milwaukee County Transit System has two bus routes that drop passengers off within walking distance of the ballpark: the GoldLine on Wisconsin Avenue and Route 18 on National Avenue.

If you're using Uber or Lyft, the pickup and dropoff point is in the stadium's Gantner parking lot. If you take a cab, pickup and drop-off are just outside Helfaer Field.

Just a head's up if you plan to use a ride share service: The crowd waiting for pickups after the Chesney concert was huge and not well-organized.

A number of area hotels and bars run shuttle services to the ballpark for games; check to see if they'll be operating for the concert, too.

Tickets are still available. How much are they?

All the VIP packages are spoken for, but there are still other tickets available, ranging from $45 to $215 at the Brewers website. That doesn't include platinum seats located in the center sections on the field. Tickets for those seats range from $173 to $518, with portions of sales benefiting Church's Chief Cares of the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee. You're going to need to secure a wristband on the 100 level if you have a ticket for the field. And if you're doing will-call, you'll be able to get your tickets at the box office near the home plate gate. You'll need your ID, and it'll need to match the designated will-call name and name on the credit card that was used to purchase the tickets.

How to notify staff if there's an issue

If you run into any problems, flag down a staff member or visit one of the guest services booths on the field level behind Section 116, the loge level behind Section 222 and the terrace level behind Section 419. You can also text "Crew" and describe the issue to 41835.

Signs cannot be larger than 18 by 24 inches, and poles and banners are prohibited. And no standing on the seats or blocking the aisles when you're singing and dancing along.

Here's who's playing, and what else to expect

Church tends to forgo openers in favor of marathon sets, but he'll bring some special guests for this stadium show.

Parker McCollum will kick things off at 7 p.m. sharp; in March, he won the ACM Award for new male artist of the year. The more seasoned country duo Brothers Osborne follow after that, and they too recently added some hardware to their trophy case, winning vocal duo of the year at the ACM Awards in March, and a Grammy for best country duo/group performance for their single "Younger Me," inspired by T.J. Osborne's experiencing coming out as gay.

As for what Church will play, he may not even know. He prides himself (and thrills fans) by offering different setlists each night. There are some standards you'll likely hear in Milwaukee — including "Drink in My Hand," "Smoke a Little Smoke" and "Talladega" — and fans can expect a marathon set. As Green Bay Press-Gazette reporter Kendra Meinert accurately put it in her glowing review of a Church Resch Center show in March: "You’re in for one of the best live concert experiences in all of country music."

Contact Piet at (414) 223-5162 or plevy@journalsentinel.com. Follow him on Twitter at @pietlevy or Facebook at facebook.com/PietLevyMJS.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Eric Church to perform at American Family Field in Milwaukee May 28