Miranda Lambert has landed in Las Vegas for her Velvet Rodeo residency at Planet Hollywood’s Zappos Theater, which she kicked off with a fiery bang — no, seriously — on Friday night (Sept. 23).
The energy in the room was palpable as the woman of the night rose from the stage in front of her name, simply Miranda, in lights. What followed was 90 minutes of her all-time best: A vocal showcase across her most-desired hits.
Shimmering in baby blue and adorned with rhinestones all over, a smiling Lambert, 38, launched into “Actin’ Up,” building with “Fastest Girl in Town” and “Kerosene” — complete with crowd-heating fireballs which shot out from all angles of the stage.
It was a hot start from the veteran star, who showed herself to be a more mature, less rowdy version of the girl we met on the Kerosene album in 2004 — but with every ounce of the sass, plus an extra helping that has come with time and wisdom. Her opening night Vegas crowd sang along through the highs and lows — “Famous in a Small Town,” “Bluebird,” “The House That Built Me” slowed the vibe, but in a good way — back into “honky-tonkin'” moments with “Geraldene” and “Tequila Does.”
Lambert is representative of a generation of country fans, with nearly two decades under her belt at this point, and Velvet Rodeo is a culmination for the Grammy winner and most-awarded female vocalist in the genre. Her rich Texas roots are still close in the rearview mirror, and she tips her hat to her home state in little bits of her Vegas show, like in her elaborate backdrops.
“Carousel” and “Tin Man” were emotional highlights, leading into a dramatic re-entrance with “Mama’s Broken Heart” and “Gunpowder & Lead” in a way Lambert has never been seen before. We won’t spoil this moment in the show, since it’s a big one, but let’s just say it’s hot and perhaps a little dangerous.
Then it was “Drunk (And I Don’t Wanna Go Home)” sans her duet partner, before she pulled her “Little Red Wagon” over the finish line and lowered back into the stage with a hearty “goodnight!“
The Velvet Rodeo showcase is hard-planned, perfectly rehearsed and choreographed — Lambert said as much — and the kind of show Vegas visitors clamor for.
Miranda Lambert will dig her heels in in Sin City until April 2023, when her latest studio album, Palomino, turns a year old.
Miranda Lambert’s Velvet Rodeo: The Las Vegas Residency Setlist:
“Actin Up”
“Fastest Girl in Town”
“Kerosene”
“Strange”
“Famous in a Small Town”
“Heart Like Mine”
“If I Was a Cowboy”
“Bluebird”
“Vice”
“All Kinds of Kinds”
“The House That Built Me”
“Automatic”
“Geraldene”
“Tequila Does”
“Only Prettier”
“White Liar”
“Carousel”
“Tin Man”
“Mama Tried” / “Mama’s Broken Heart”
“Gunpowder & Lead”
“Drunk (And I Don’t Wanna Go Home)”
“Little Red Wagon”
Miranda Lambert Kicks Off Velvet Rodeo Vegas Residency
Miranda Lambert launched her Velvet Rodeo: The Las Vegas Residency stay at Planet Hollywood’s Zappos Theater on Friday, Sept. 23, 2022. It was a night of highs, lows, fireballs and singalongs.