Kacey Musgraves | photo by Matthew Shaver for WXPN | brightloud.com
Watch Kacey Musgraves perform a moving Selena cover and an uplifting Cyndi Lauper cover
On her winter tour, country popstar Kacey Musgraves got a lot of attention for a rendition of Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive,” performed with opener Natalie Prass. Her love of the disco favorite was evident in the way she wholly embodied its spirit, and that musical empathy extends to two more recent covers she’s done on the road, beginning this past Monday at RodeoHouston in her native Texas.
Performing at NRG Park almost 20 years to the day after Selena Quintanilla’s final performance (back when the stadium was called the AstroDome), Musgraves played a moving rendition of “Como La Flor,” a 1992 single from the cumbia star and one of her biggest hits. Selena was tragically murdered by Yolanda Saldívar, the former president of her fan club, on March 31, 1995 — she was 23 years old — and that AstroDome concert was later released under the title Live! The Last Concert, with “Como La Flor” being the set-closer.
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As Rolling Stone notes, “Her impact is still being felt nearly a quarter century later — in Musgraves’ performance, the awed Houston crowd sings along with a mix of reverent emotion and enthusiastic glee.” As she launched into the cover, Musgraves told the crowd “I love the queen Selena just as much as you do!”
Selena’s sister Suzette Quintanilla was in attendance, and shared a video of the cover on her Instagram page.
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Two nights later, Musgraves was at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, and in a lighter mood, played a super uplifting cover of “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun,” bringing out Hayley Williams from Paramore out to join her on the song.
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Kacey Musgraves just took home the Album of the Year trophy at the 2019 Grammys for 2018’s beautiful Golden Hour LP, and she returns to Philadelphia on Wednesday, September 11th for the second leg of the Oh What A World tour. Tickets and more information can be found at the XPN Concert Calendar.
(h/t CNN, Rolling Stone, The Fader, The Fader)