These are the 25 most-attended RodeoHouston concerts
Think country is king at RodeoHouston? Not so much.
Lots of people might disagree, but numbers don’t lie. Seven of the 10 highest-attended shows are from non-country acts.
Six of them are Go Tejano Day performers, including the top spot, held by Los Tigres del Norte. Only two women are among the top 25 most-attended shows: Cardi B and Ariana Grande. That’s also because of the lack of women on each year’s lineup.
The coming days will reveal if any of this year’s performers can bump anyone off the list. And if Go Tejano Day, featuring La Fiera de Ojinaga, will be another record breaker.
1. Los Tigres del Norte
Date: March 10, 2019 Paid Attendance:
75,586
Los Tigres’ appeal spans generations, from grandparents to young couples to teenagers. Their show broke the attendance record set less than two weeks earlier by Cardi B.
2. Cardi B
Date: March 1, 2019 Paid Attendance:
75,580
The rap superstar’s first rodeo show sold out in 40 minutes, even faster than George Strait’s closing performance that year. Her booking on Black Heritage Day was a direct response to the underwhelming response to Leon Bridges, who appeals to largely white audiences, the previous year.
3. Garth Brooks Date: March 18, 2018 Paid Attendance:
75,577
Brooks’ second rodeo show of 2018 was even better than the first. He was joined by wife Trisha Yearwood and said he made a “handshake deal” with the rodeo board to “come back here, if I can still walk, and celebrate the 100th anniversary with you guys.”
4. Calibre 50 Date: March 11, 2018 Paid Attendance:
75,565
Calibre 50’s sound is largely built on polkabased corridos that examine Mexico’s drug culture, immigration, ranch life and romance. They were the first Go Tejano Day solo act in several years.
5. Siggno (on a double bill with Banda el Recodo)
Date: March 19, 2017 Paid attendance:
75,557
Frontman Jesse Turner made frequent references
to his son and Siggno bassist, Jacob Turner, who suffered severe brain damage after a car crash in February 2016 in Harlingen. It left him in a coma for more than four months.
5. Banda el Recodo (on a double bill with Siggno)
Date: March 19, 2017 Paid attendance:
75,557
Banda el Recodo took the stage in tailored black blazers with studded sequins, black jeans and boots. The dozen-plus members danced, in formation, at the front of the stage and shouted out cities throughout Mexico and Texas.
6. Los Huracanes del Norte (on a double bill with Banda Los Recoditos)
Date: March 13, 2016 Paid attendance:
75,508
Los Huracanes del Norte incited lots of singalongs from the stage. The band, going on more than 40 years, took the stage in deep red jackets with intricate gold embroidery and black cowboy hats.
6. Banda Los Recoditos (on a double bill with Los Huracanes del Norte) Date: March 13, 2016 Paid attendance:
75,508
Banda los Recoditos’ appeal also owes a debt to colored lights, simple choreography and flashy stage clothes. It’s all in the presentation. They looked like a ’90s boy band in blue, black and yellow outfits.
7. La Arrolladora Banda El Limón (on a double bill with La Maquinaria Nortena) Date: March 15, 2015 Paid attendance:
75,357
La Arrolladora Banda El Limón, who performed in 2011, returned with the same blaring horns and infectious energy. They sported black suits with
lots of sparkle.
7. La Maquinaria Nortena (on a double bill with La Arrolladora Banda El Limón)
Date: March 15, 2015 Paid attendance:
75,357
Band members eschewed the usual car ride and walked across the dirt floor to the stage, playing “Deep in the Heart of Texas.” They were dressed in red, white and blue blazers. And they covered ’90s hit “Ayer y Hoy” by Tejano group Mazz.
8. Los Invasores de Nuevo Leon (on a double bill with Julion Alvarez)
Date: March 10, 2013 Paid attendance:
75,305
Los Invasores de Nuevo Leon was founded in 1977. The band’s music frequently centers on political themes. They shared a bill in 2013 with Julion Alvarez.
8. Julion Alvarez (on a double bill with Los Invasores de Nuevo Leon)
Date: March 10, 2013 Paid attendance:
75,305
Alvarez was previously the lead singer of Banda MS. He went on to a successful solo career and was a coach on “La Voz … Mexico.”
9. Luke Bryan Date: March 16, 2013 Paid attendance:
75,242
“I may have said it last year, but I grew up dreaming of playing (RodeoHouston),” Bryan told the crowd in 2013. “To sell this place out on a Saturday night is a country boy’s dream.” He has four shows in the top 25 for overall paid attendance.
10. Blake Shelton Date: March 15, 2013 Paid attendance:
75,238
Shelton paid tribute to George Strait with a bouncy rendition of “All My Ex’s Live in Texas.” The
crowd sang cheerfully along with every word. “I can’t even get tickets,” he said of Strait’s sold-out show that year.
11. Pesado (on a double bill with Banda MS) Date: March 16, 2014 Paid attendance:
75,224
Pesado was clearly the draw for a majority of the crowd in 2014. There were waves of cheers for every mournful drinking song and every shuffling cumbia.
11. Banda MS (on a double bill with Pesado)
Date: March 16, 2014 Paid attendance:
75,224
The 16-member Banda Sinaloense MS de Sergio Lizarraga (known to fans as Banda MS) boasted a barrage of blaring horns and loosely choreographed routines. The band looked slick in matching purple blazers, white buttondowns and white pants.
12. Pitbull
Date:
Paid attendance:
March 14, 2013
75,217 His crowd was the second largest in RodeoHouston history at the time. It’s thanks to his broad appeal. There were young kids, moms and everyone in between shouting “Dale!” throughout the fast-paced performance.
13. Maroon 5
Date: March 13, 2014 Paid attendance:
75,214
Adam Levine self-censored the explicit language in the band’s songs during the performance. He said it was because he made “a very, very bad mistake” in 2016 when he let loose a barrage of foul language when he noticed every word he spoke was picked up by the stadium’s captioning screens.
14. Bruno Mars Date:
Paid attendance:
March 7, 2013 75,177 Mars set the all-time attendance record with his debut performance, a marvel of singing, dancing and
pure showmanship. “We ain’t never done anything like this before,” he told the crowd.
15. Brad Paisley Date:
Paid attendance:
March 21, 2015
75,167 Paisley’s ninth time on the rotating stage again proved why he’s asked back every year. He was funny and heartfelt, exciting and engaging, well-rehearsed and spontaneous.
16. Kane Brown Date: March 9, 2019 Paid Attendance:
75,122
Brown’s heartfelt debut performance was infused with personal sentiment between songs. Late in the set, RodeoHouston officials presented Brown with a plaque recognizing his single “Heaven” for being certified four times platinum (or sales of 4 million units).
17. Luke Bryan Date: March 10, 2016 Paid attendance:
75,082
Bryan strutted into his 2016 RodeoHouston performance as the fastest-selling show of the season. Tickets were snapped up as soon as they went on sale. Latecomers flooded social media looking for extras.
18. Luke Bryan Date: March 17, 2014 Paid attendance:
75,078
Bryan showcased impressive growth in his third trip to RodeoHouston. There was a newfound nuance in his delivery, highlighted during a standout stretch that included an able reading of George Strait’s “Unwound” and lovely, lilting ballad “Do I.”
19. Ariana Grande Date: March 17, 2015 Paid attendance:
75,068
Grande’s debut performance energized the crowd. She was flanked by eight dancers and a DJ, who played Grande’s R&Band-EDM-flavored pop tracks in place of a live band.
20. Usher
Date: March 7, 2014 Paid attendance:
75,067
Rodeo officials worked for four years to bring Usher to RodeoHouston. His entrance was preceded by a motorcycle brigade, and he was continually flanked by four female and two male dancers.
21. Blake Shelton Date: March 20, 2014 Paid attendance:
75,054
“The Voice” was wellrepped in 2014 with a trio of coaches taking the RodeoHouston stage: Usher, Adam Levine (and the rest of Maroon 5) and Blake Shelton, who is one of the event’s most consistent draws.
22. Luke Bryan Date: March 16, 2017 Paid attendance:
75,033
Bryan was on a roll in 2017. He sang the national anthem the previous month at Super Bowl LI and sold out an October show at The Woodlands Pavilion.
23. Garth Brooks Date: Feb. 27, 2018 Paid attendance:
75,018
Brooks was the first act to play the updated RodeoHouston stage, the first upgrade in 31 years. It’s 126 feet wide, tip to tip, and includes a 48-foot diameter rotating performance area. It also boasts fivestar points, each extending to a length of 36 feet, which can be individually raised or lowered.
24. Brad Paisley (tie) Date: March 17, 2018 Paid attendance:
75,016
Paisley’s intro included snippets of the “Stranger Things” and “Knight Rider” themes and a bit of Prince’s “Purple Rain,” complete with matching light show, before tearing into “Old Alabama,” a tribute to the legendary country band.
24. Blake Shelton (tie)
Date: March 19, 2015 Paid attendance:
75,016
Shelton told the 2015 crowd he gets “nervous as crap every time I walk out here.” He has three shows in the top 25 overall for paid attendance.
25. Florida Georgia Line
Date: March 18, 2015 Paid attendance:
75,015
FGL’s second of four rodeo performances drew their biggest crowd. The brawny duo of Brian Kelley and Tyler Hubbard, stretch country music far past its traditional confines with pop and hiphop influences.