Stagecoach 2023: 6 women who dominated the country music festival

I wasn't always a country fan.

I was born and raised in the Chicago suburbs, where I grew up listening to classic rock, pop and Broadway musical soundtracks. But after attending the University of Missouri and moving to Florida and later Wyoming, it just kind of ... happened. Somewhere along the way, country became a part of my life, and suddenly I knew all the lyrics to the twangy hits that seemed to dominate seemingly every other radio station.

Then I moved to California, and suddenly, it felt particulary uncool to be a country fan. I was no longer surrounded by people who grew up either in rural America or 25-45 minutes outside of it, and I noticed myself holding back when speaking with my coworkers about my excitement surrounding Stagecoach.

But then I thought of my best friend, one of the biggest country fans I know, who I went to my first country music festival (Country Thunder in Twin Lakes, Wisconsin) with. She's always pointed out that I care too much about what other people think in terms of my music tastes, and that I should just lean into who I am.

It's women like her who embody the true spirit of what country music is all about: being unabashedly yourself, and just having fun, and that's the exact same spirit I noticed among the women on this year's Stagecoach lineup.

From badass genre benders like Morgan Wade to seasoned veterans like Melissa Etheridge and Mary Chapin Carpenter, this year's lineup was full of inspiring women who prove with every new recording and every new performance that women deserve more respect in this male-dominated genre.

So, without further ado, here's my list of six women (in no particular order, because they all equally rule) who should be on your radar after their excellent Stagecoach 2023 performances.

1. Mackenzie Carpenter

Hull, Georgia native Mackenzie Carpenter kicked off the entire festival as the first Sirius XM Spotlight artist to take the Mane Stage in God-awful heat Friday, and she did so with grace and phenomenal talent. Best known for her first Spotify hit, "Can't Nobody" (which was my favorite song from her short set that I admittedly arrived to late because they didn't open the gates on time), Carpenter is the type of artist who just lifts your mood the second you hear her sing — especially when she talks about being able to binge an entire season of "Real Housewives" when all the men leave town to hunt in her song "Huntin' Season." Like any good country artist, she understands how to blend humor, honesty and humility, so it's no wonder Carpenter was chosen as a member of the CMT Next Women of Country class of 2023.

2. Tiera Kennedy

I missed Tiera Kennedy's first performance of the day on the Mane Stage Friday, so I was thrilled to see on the schedule that she was playing a second time on the Bud Light Backyard stage. Kennedy, one of the very few artists of color at the whole festival, had a disappointedly small crowd when I first showed up for her set, but word traveled fast and more festivalgoers trickled in as her excellent performance went on. The Birmingham, Alabama native seemed like she was having so much fun throughout the set, and the effect was contagious: when she broke into a cover of Sara Evans' "Suds in the Bucket," I turned to my right to see a trio of women line dancing along to her beautiful voice.

I'm a big fan of Kennedy's Spotify hit "Found It In You," which she dedicated to her husband who was "somewhere out there in the crowd" during the set. I also swear she looked right at me and smiled when she saw me singing along, especially because a few minutes later she gave a shoutout to the "few people out there who know the words." The love song is romantic but also upbeat, and the way she performs it is truly a celebration of love rather than an overindulgent tale about just how lucky she is to have her man (a lovey-dovey trap that many country singers fall into, in my opinion).

3. Lily Rose

I think I smiled for a good 15 minutes straight after Lily Rose's set finished at the Bud Light Backyard Saturday (she also played the Mane Stage first, but I opted for the indoor performance). Not only was it meaningful that Rose, one of the VERY few LGBTQ artists on the Stagecoach lineup, took that particular stage in light of Bud Light's recent Dylan Mulvaney ad controversy, it was just awesome to hear a woman sing raw, brazen country songs about her relationships with other women. It was also incredible to watch a live performer in an afternoon time slot be treated like a full-on rock star. In the middle of singing "Remind Me of You," which she said was written by her "friend Sam Hunt," several fans in the front row handed her posters that she signed without missing a beat of the song.

Rose is one of the few music artists across all genres that I genuinely listen to all the way through while streaming — no skips. Every song hits just right, and apparently even the most masculine of male country fans agree, because on my way out I watched a festivalgoer I was convinced was about to roast her turn to his friend and say "that was sick. She's awesome!"

4. Morgan Wade

Morgan Wade is potentially country's biggest badass of the moment, and I'm truly in awe of her stage presence, coupled with her rugged, mesmerizing voice. But don't take my word for it. Her debut full-length album, "Reckless," topped Rolling Stone Country’s 25 Best Country and Americana Albums list, sat at No. 4 on 10 Best Country Albums lists from both all-genre site Stereogum and Taste of Country, No. 5 at Billboard, and No. 13 on Rolling Stone’s all-genre Top 50 Albums.

It's hard to put into words what makes Wade's country/rock/Americana sound so special, but after seeing her live, I deeply understand the funny drunk man I saw dancing around with a "I'm just here to see Morgan Wade" t-shirt draped around his back at the performance. From choosing to cover "Jessie's Girl" to closing with the beloved "Wilder Days," Wade made no mistakes.

5. Priscilla Block

Where do I even begin with this life of the party? Priscilla Block is the kind of artist of late who quickly achieved internet fame via a TikTok song that went viral, but hasn't let the social media of it all affect the quality of her music. Sure, some of Block's songs are simple or even somewhat funny in how to-the-point they are. But why should she beat around the bush? Block is carving out a space for herself as a curvy singer in a genre full of women with supermodel figures, and she's not afraid to sing about it.

Her performance harkens back to my first point in the intro of this article. Country music is a lot of things, and sure, it's not for everyone, but good country artists don't give a @#$% about being who other people want them to be. Block is inspiring women across the genre to embrace their body, no matter how far outside the industry mold it is, and I wish I could've jumped onstage and raised a solo cup right alongside her as she shotgunned a beer at the end of her no-holds-barred set.

6. Valerie June

June is multi-talented performer and she showcased that in an early afternoon set on Sunday playing banjo, acoustic guitar, and electric guitar while singing her unique blend of rootsy, folksy, bluesy music. The 41-year-old is born and raised in Tennessee and she has that distinctive Memphis twang that makes every song seem a little more rooted in her home state.

She has cool Medusa-style dreadlocked hair and a stage presence that deserves a platform on a bigger stage. Her set dipped into bluegrass and her song "Tennessee Time" was at molasses speed and felt perfectly suited for the steamy afternoon. Having seen June person, you're left with one conclusion: She should be a bigger star. ― Shad Powers

Other outstanding women of Stagecoach

Honorable mentions must also be given to these women who everyone probably already expected to be amazing, but it's still worth celebrating them:

• Melissa Etheridge: I mean, what is there to say? She's one of the most talented country musicians of her lifetime.

• Mary Chapin Carpenter: She's another icon who knows how to leave a crowd happy.

• Gabby Barrett: One of our reporters who caught her set called her the "next Carrie Underwood."

• Trixie Mattel: This entertainer performs as a woman, so we think it counts. And her six outfit changes were simply legendary.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Stagecoach 2023: 6 women who dominated the country music festival