Jake Owen celebrated his most recent number one “Anywhere With You” last night in the grandest way possible: by throwing a free concert in BMI’s back parking lot. Now when you’re as hot as Jake Owen (in every way possible) and you announce a free show in Nashville, you get a crowd… a crowd larger than the capacity of Bridgestone arena.
These numbers are by no means official, but reports are saying there were over 8,000 people in the parking lot, and another 8-10,000 outside on roads and parking garages who couldn’t get in! Beforehand, Music Row looked like a madhouse, as though people were standing in line for… well, for a free Jake Owen concert.
Photo Credit: Leslie Armstrong, Nashville Country Club
Jake and a couple other people who graced the stage kept delightedly stating their awe at how many fans there were, and that they “had no idea this many people would show up.” Well Jake, it wasn’t exactly a secret. He took over the area’s biggest radio station – BIG98, who sponsored the show – proclaiming it “Jake98;” plus he continually tweeted and Facebooked about appearances by Thomas Rhett, Florida Georgia Line and Dierks Bentley. Having said that, it’s still mindblowing where all these screaming girls in sundresses came from. It’s almost as though there was… a free Jake Owen concert.
The big news, however, was that Jake played with 9½ fingers. According to multiple sources, he injured his right ring finger about a month ago, and it began bleeding Sunday during rehearsals. He went to the hospital yesterday (yes, the day of the show) to find out his nerves were dead, and the doctors had to remove the top of his finger. (To reiterate… this happened the morning of the show.) Not one to disappoint, he wrapped it up, threw on some nerve killer, and played with as much energy as ever. He even played guitar. Hashtag: #badass.
