George Strait Announces Six-Date Stadium Tour with Chris Stapleton and Little Big Town: ‘It Was A No-Brainer For Me’

George Strait will be returning to the road for a six-date trek that’s set to launch next spring.

When the news dropped exclusively with Billboard on Monday (Oct. 24), the outlet shared that these shows will mark the 89x platinum artist’s “most extensive stadium run in nine years.” 

Strait will be joined by country stars Little Big Town and Chris Stapleton for his six stops, beginning May 6 in Glendale, AZ. He’ll hit Seattle, Denver, Milwaukee and Nashville before wrapping up in Tampa on August 5.

“When I walk through those curtains and see those smiling faces, my feet don’t touch the ground again ‘til I walk back out and get on that bus that got me there. That’s from a song I wrote called ‘I’ll Always Remember You.’ It’s a true statement,” Strait shared exclusively with Billboard. “When we talked about doing these six shows next year with Chris, it was a no-brainer for me. I was all in.”

“I love doing these shows with George about as much as I like doing anything. There’s nothing to compare it to,” Stapleton added. “So many of his songs are in the ethos of what country music is. Playing these shows together is a great experience all the way around.”

Strait toured for more than 30 years before deciding to take a step back in 2012 when he revealed that “the old road-warrior days are just going to be over.” He embarked on his two-year The Cowboy Rides Away Tour in 2014, and since then, has taken the stage for a limited number of individual arena, festival and stadium shows. He also extended his Strait to Vegas series at T-Mobile Arena earlier this year.

This next set of dates will be Strait’s biggest stadium commitment in nearly a decade. 

When it comes to production, these shows will include “minimal but top-of-the-line production.” There won’t be fire shooting out of the stage or lasers reaching the back of the crowd, instead, all the focus will be on Strait. 

In terms of a set list, Strait generally sticks to the hits for his shows, and while fans can expect to hear many of those signature tracks, he also plans to change it up a bit too. 

“There are certain songs that I feel we have to do – I don’t want anything thrown at me!” he joked. “I’m kidding, of course, but I just know when I go to see a certain artist it’s usually because of certain songs. If I don’t hear them, I’m disappointed.”

Before he hits the road for these shows, Strait will perform in his home state of Texas for a two-night stand at Fort Worth’s Dickies Arena on Friday, November 18 and Saturday, November 19. In addition, he will be returning to Las Vegas for his Strait to Vegas series at the T-Mobile Arena for the 35th and 36th times on Friday, December 2 and Saturday, December 3.

Tickets for his stadium run will go on pre-sale Oct. 26 and start at $59. The regular on-sale begins Nov. 4.