“Just To Be Clear There Is No Performance Tonight”: Kacey Musgraves’ Ryman Show Was a Psychedelic Experience

With her 2012 single “Merry Go Round,” Kacey Musgraves brought something to Nashville that had long been missing. Her debut single, which she co-wrote and produced, snagged a Grammy for Best Country Song and established the then-24-year-old as a music force to be reckoned with. More than a decade later, Musgraves still hasn’t run out of things to say, winning Grammy Awards for “Space Cowboy,” “Butterflies,” and “The Architect.”

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So when fans saw advertisements for an event featuring the “Follow Your Arrow” singer at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium, they rushed to buy tickets. No doubt, they anticipated hearing all the songs listed above and more. Imagine their surprise, however, when Musgraves instead began spouting terms like “mycology” and “psilocybin.”

Kacey Musgraves Event Causes Some Confusion at the Ryman

On Thursday, Sept. 18, country singer Kacey Musgraves joined world-renowned mycologist Paul Stamets onstage at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville. It’s a stage Musgraves is quite familiar with, but this time, she didn’t sing a single note.

Instead, the seven-time CMA Award winner was there to discuss “magic mushrooms” with Stamets for a live taping of the Sing for Science podcast. Musgraves has previously spoken about her own experiences with psilocybin and how they have influenced her music, particularly 2021’s star-crossed.

However, some fans apparently arrived at the Ryman with different expectations. Emerging singer-songwriter Faith Hopkins was hoping to hear Musgraves perform “Slow Burn.” Instead, she got “no singing and lots of big words I didn’t understand,” according to her TikTok video.

Fans Defend Musgraves

Several TikTok users came to Musgraves’ defense, pointing out that the event’s advertising never gave an indication that Musgraves planned to perform. Still, Hopkins wasn’t alone.

“The first words out of the host’s mouth were, ‘just to be clear there is no performance tonight,” another TikTok user wrote. “& immediately floods of girls in their cute concert outfits walked out.”

Ultimately, fans were still given a psychedelic experience they’ll never forget. As most Kacey Musgraves fans are aware, the music star has never hidden her penchant for substances like cannabis, psilocybin, and LSD.

“I’m a firm believer that what you do with your body is your own choice, and legally that covers a lot of ground,” the singer told Billboard in March 2018.

For those who would still like to see Musgraves perform, her next show is Friday, Sept. 24, at Teatro Metropólitan in Mexico City, Mexico.

Featured image by Jason Kempin/Getty Images for ABA