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Luke Bryan makes Resorts World Theatre his home during NFR week residency shows

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Luke Bryan has been playing Resorts World Theatre this week during NFR in Las Vegas.
Courtesy of Resorts World

“I started out here in February and if you would’ve told me that I would’ve survived a year in Las Vegas, I never would’ve never believed it,” country superstar Luke Bryan said at Wednesday night’s show. “So I’d like to give myself a round of applause for not dying.”

This weekend marks the last run of residency shows at Resorts World Las Vegas for the singer this year. Notably, it coincides with the last days of the National Finals Rodeo, and the crowd this week was filled with folks in town for the event, made apparent when Bryan asked about it and the room filled with cheers.

Like he has done since opening his residency at Resorts World Theatre, Bryan spent much of the concert chatting and interacting with the crowd. During “All My Friends Say,” he passes out high fives as though he has known each person for years, and when singing “One Margarita,” he offers a fan a margarita to enjoy. He also enjoyed drinks himself throughout the night.

As a general concertgoer and music lover—one who isn’t too familiar with Bryan—I would argue the best part of the night happens when the 46-year-old Georgia native brings out a blue grand piano and asks, “Y’all mind if I play whatever the hell I want?” He started with a rendition of “Buy Dirt,” a song by Jordan Davis on which he was featured. Bryan also covers songs like “Meet in the Middle” by Diamond Rio.

He finished up on the piano with his first hit, “Do I,” before switching to an acoustic guitar. He continued the same trend, weaving between his own songs, including latest hit, “Country On,” and covers like “Neon Moon” by Brooks & Dunn.

“The way I see it, the longer I’m in here , the less money I spend,” he jokes. “And you should feel that way too. That is until you buy my T-shirt, therefore I make more money for more gambling.”

As he rolled out different songs, you could see the musician calculating what key was needed and what the lyrics were. It was like having a spontaneous private jam session, so spontaneous that Bryan even missed a chord here and there. But his performance shows off his knowledge and love of music while giving his fans what they came for; it’s just Luke Bryan and his whims in the comfort of his house.

He brings the high-energy vibe back with “Move,” now supported by the full band. A long ramp that hangs above the theater’s walkways allowing audience members with higher and farther seats to have a closer look comes down from the ceiling and Bryan performs “Country Girl” and “I Don’t Want This Night to End,” before finally ending the night.

Between the lighthearted jokes, intimate jam-session feel and free-flowing drinks, this might be the most literally an entertainer has ever taken a residency.

Bryan wraps up NFR week with two more performances and will be back at Resorts World Theatre in February.

LUKE BRYAN December 9-10, February 1, 3-4, 8, 10, 11, 8 p.m., Resorts World Theatre, axs.com.

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