Meghan Patrick’s Golden Child Tour Proves Her Fans Are Her Greatest Win

Meghan Patrick has built her career “brick by brick,” working hard since day one and gaining an incredibly loyal fanbase along the way. That dedication radiated throughout the walls of Chicago’s Carol’s Pub, where her headlining stop felt more like a reunion of old friends than strangers gathered at a concert.

Her performance was one that those in attendance will be talking about for a long time. For nearly 90 minutes, she made the stage her own, delivering a mix of fan-favorites from her latest project, Golden Child (and its deluxe, The Final Chapter) as well as deep-cuts during an intimate acoustic section.

But before heading into the venue and experiencing the true magic of the Golden Child Tour, Meghan joined us across the street at a local Italian restaurant for some good food and even better conversations. With a warm pizza waiting for her, she took the time to share stories from the road, reflect on her musical journey up to this point, her first-ever U.S. headline tour and the legacy she hopes to leave with her music.

Her spirits were high and heart was full as she took us all the way back to when she signed her first U.S. record deal and the grind she’s been on ever since. Unlike many of today’s country artists, Meghan Patrick hasn’t relied on a viral moment to catapult her to the top overnight. Instead, she’s built her success organically through hard work, dedication, and a commitment to investing in herself.

Her hands-on approach has helped her forge a deep connection with fans worldwide, and it shows. As a result, the Canadian singer/songwriter has found that it isn’t the size of the stage she’s playing that really matters, but the experience she gives each audience and the connection that’s born from it.

“It’s super beneficial to get to open for bigger acts. You kind of get put in front of their audience, but I’ve always felt like I’ve been able to make a bigger impact and more lifelong fans when I can do my own show, give them the full experience as opposed to 25 minutes as the first of three when people are kind of still getting a beer and getting in their seats and stuff,” she told Country Now. “And I get to play longer. I can go stand at the merch table after the show and meet everybody. And I just feel like that’s how you build fan bases that stick with you forever.”

When the clock hit 9 PM on Thursday, February 26, it was time for Meghan Patrick to finally hit the stage. Fans grabbed a fresh drink and either found their seat at their reserved table to excitedly made their way to the very front of the room, ready for an up-close-and-personal concert experience. She and her band made their grand entrance and instantly created an electricity that’s hard to describe.

The setlist began with a few tracks of her Golden Child album, including “Whether You Love Me or Not,” “Stoned Alone,” “Both Can Be True” and the hilariously relatable “Project.” She then greeted the crowd with nothing but love and promised to “kick the weekend off right,” with a high-energy performance that not only created a safe space but also allowed fans to let loose.

“Thank you for making sure I didn’t walk out to an empty bar, I was genuinely scared of that,” she admitted.

Once her fans were properly warmed up, Meghan told some of her band members to enjoy a brief break while she slowed things down with an acoustic portion of the show. This was the time of the night that some fans looked most forward to, as they had the hand in choosing the songs added into the set list. In Chicago, she sang “Other People,” followed by an unreleased track titled “I Sure Hope So,” as well as the powerful tune, “Ironman,” that had tears flowing in the crowd.

The next performance became a highlight of the entire show. The song, “Hold on Meg” appears as the last track on the deluxe version of Golden Child and is arguably one of the most personal of the entire collection. These lyrics act as a message of encouragement to herself while also being a love letter to her fans.

“The song ends with like, it’s not about the suits and ties and the industry and all that. It’s about the people, the family that’s come to every show on this whole tour. Those people matter, my music matters that much to them and that is so valuable,” she shared. “And it might not make headlines and it might not be what the media talks about, and most people don’t even know the kind of impact I’m blessed to have on some of these people that I know. I wanted them to know that I know and that it matters to me and that they matter to me.”

The reason this song has become such a memorable part of her performance is because of the moving thing that fans have done to prove that they hear her, and that they believe she matters too. Meghan was brought to tears when fans surprised her by holding up signs that read encouraging messages like “You’re right on time,” “Here’s your sign, Meg,” and “We’ve decided…you’ve made it.”

This heartfelt act that began early in her tour and once again took place in Chicago, had her struggling to finish the tune while holding back tears.

“Those fans, they’ve been coming to my shows and they’ve been following me since the beginning before it was cool to like my music or pay attention to what I was doing. And I have really tight relationships with a lot of those people because also because I write really deeply personal music,” she said reflecting on their kindness. “They’re good people, they’re kind people, and those are the kind of fans I want. Those are the kind of people I want buying my tickets and being in the crowd of my shows.”

The remainder of the concert showcased Meghan’s country-rock edge on stage through Led Zeppelin covers as well as songs like the title track to her album and her ode to her husband, Mitchell Tenpenny with “The Sweet Spot.” The evening came to a close with her homewrecker anthem, “Jessica, Jezebel,” which called for some epic crowd participation. A slew of small, golden kazoos were passed out to the audience, creating a “kazoo choir” to help her deliver the track.

@countrynow.com Only at a @Meghan Patrick show: the crowd Turns Into a Kazoo Choir!😂🎶 #meghanpatrick #kazoo #countrymusic ♬ original sound – CountryNow.com

Of course, as promised, she made sure to stay afterward and greet as many fans who wanted to meet her over at the merch booth. Meghan told Country Now that her goal with every show is to create an environment where “everybody feels welcome, where it feels like just like we’re all family and everybody’s there to have a good time and it’s just a positive vibe. It’s a place to be yourself, whatever that is. And to feel intimately connected to me and the guys on the stage and the stories that we tell.” And that’s exactly what happened on this Thursday night.

All those years of working hard to ensure she stayed authentic and honest with her music is proving to bring success her way on her terms. She admits she has had so many people telling her what she needs to do in order to “make it,” but she found that often, “the things that looked like winning are not really winning.” That mindset and lesson is also what her entire Golden Child record is about.

“Some of the most successful people I know are the unhappiest and I realized that like I don’t want that. I don’t want to be unhappy and I want to be fulfilled. And of course, I also have to pay my mortgage. So yeah, it’s still my job, but I have to believe that there’s a way to do that, to have both.”

This also has led her to envision the bigger picture and the legacy she wants to leave behind when she’s gone one day. Instead of being remembered by the number of awards she’s won or the amount of money she made, she wants to be remembered by the songs she wrote that helped people through tough times, the ones that made people love themselves more, the ones that made a positive impact.

“That to me is a beautiful legacy,” she shared.

Meghan Patrick’s Golden Child Tour continues next month with stops across Nevada and California before she heads over to Canada. She will return to the U.S. in May and wrap up her headline dates in July.