ABC/Image Group LATonight at Music City’s Ascend Amphitheater, Thomas Rhett plays the first of two sold-out shows in his hometown on his Home Team Tour. While TR has expressed his surprise at being able to headline at this stage in his career, there’s one person who’s even more flabbergasted by it all: his dad, hit songwriter and 90’s artist Rhett Akins.
The proud father admits he watched in wonder as the crowds poured in for TR’s first few dates with his name at the top of the ticket.
“The weirdest part was pulling up to the venue and seeing thousands of cars, and… moms holding their seven-year-old daughter’s hand,” Akins recalls.
“My first thought is, ‘They’re here to see Jason Aldean. They’re here to see [Florida Georgia Line]. They’re here to see Luke [Bryan]’,” he goes on, “’Cause I’m not used to Thomas Rhett being the headliner. And it was like so weird to pull in a parking lot and go, ‘Every single one of these people came to see Thomas Rhett.’”
The man behind hits like “That Ain’t My Truck” and “Don’t Get Me Started” says things got even more surreal when he went to eat dinner.
“He had his own catering!” says Akins. “It’s like, ‘This is Thomas Rhett’s roast! And it tastes a little better, literally!'”
He brags, “I thought the catering was the best I’ve ever eaten. I don’t know if it’s because it really was or because I was so excited that it was his.”
Look for Thomas Rhett to duet with his dad on his upcoming album, since TR’s joked he’s making it his mission to revive his father’s 1990s career.
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