Country took over the city for a couple of hours on Saturday night at the Canadian National Exhibition in Toronto as Chad Brownlee and Leaving Thomas took to the legendary bandshell stage. The MDM Recordings artists took their turns belting out country hits and entertaining the assembled crowd.
Leaving Thomas opened the show with Annika and Bryton taking another chance to introduce their live show to eager country music fans. The upstart duo didn't waste their opportunity, charming the crowd with their banter and energy, and showing off the chops that have them on a lot of Canadian country music playlists and must watch lists.
Their eight song set included the duo's first two radio singles, Waiting Kind Of Girl and Best Adventure, and also gave the Toronto crowd a listen to their upcoming single, Blame It On The Neon, coming to your local country radio station on September 8.
Country music fans will be hearing more and more from Leaving Thomas, y'all should be ready for it.
Leaving Thomas Setlist, CNE 2017
🎤 Call It A Night
🎤 No One Needs To Know (Shania Twain)
🎤 Best Adventure
🎤 Blame It On The Neon
🎤 Shame On Me
🎤 From This Valley (The Civil Wars)
🎤 Dibs/ Cruise (K.Ballerini/Florida Georgia Line)
🎤 Waiting Kind Of Girl
Chad Brownlee, one of Canadian country music's biggest stars, headlined the night, playing a full 17 song set, and showing all of his leading man skills on the stage.
The B.C. native played songs from the start of his career through to his most recent release, Out Of The Blue, watching and listening as fans sang and danced along, and waved their arms in the air at his direction. He held them in his hands, and they welcomed it - and it was fantastic to see. And as improbable as it might seem, the cheers and singing got louder and louder as the night went on.
Things may have been loudest when it got quietest on stage. Brownlee stood front and centre, solo with his acoustic guitar, and strummed as he sang a mashup of Thinkin' Out Loud and Happy Man, and the crowd sang along, and everyone loved it in one of those very special moments that live music provides.
Toronto may not yet be the hotbed of country music that Calgary or Nashville are, but shows like Saturday night with Chad Brownlee showing his ability to make fans sing along to radio hits they know and love, continue to foster the growing community of country fans in the city, and will bring more shows to us in the future.
Be ready to be there and be ready to love the heck out of it!
Chad Brownlee Setlist, CNE 2017
🎤 Hood Of My Car
🎤 Smoke In The Rain
🎤 Fallin' Over You
🎤 His Own Terms
🎤 Something We Shouldn't Do
🎤 Hearts On Fire
🎤 Might As Well Be Me
🎤 Mercy
🎤 Out Of The Blue
🎤 Carried Away
🎤 Where The Party At
🎤 Just Because
🎤 Thinkin' Out Loud/Happy Man (E. Sheeran/T.Rhett)
🎤 Free Fallin' (with Leaving Thomas)
🎤 Listen
Encore:
🎤 Love Me Or Leave Me
🎤 Hate Your For It
Chad Brownlee at the 2017 CNE
Leaving Thomas at the 2017 CNE
