GRAHAM — Bucky Covington took the stage for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic hit in early 2020 in his home state Saturday evening.
The former American Idol contestant, who calls both Richmond and Scotland counties home, played a concert at the Graham Amphitheater as part of the 2021 Kinfolk Concert Series presented by Maverick Radio WSML.
Covington opened with the first track on his debut album, “American Friday Night,” and played several other tunes from the release including “A Different World” and “I’ll Walk,” both of which made the Top 10 on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart.
He and the band also performed several covers, ranging from Elvis Presley’s “Suspicious Minds” to Pink Floyd’s “Another Brick in the Wall Part 2.”
Midway through the show, he let his twin brother and drummer Rocky Covington take over the mic — with keyboardist/backing vocalist/bus driver Greg Lowery sitting behind the kit — for a cover of Kid Rock’s “All Summer Long.”
Rocky returned to the drums while bass player Donald “Ducky” Medlock took center stage for a cover of Sublime’s “What I Got.”
Also in the band is lead guitarist Keenan Whittington, who used to play in Nashville with Hamlet guitar-slinger Jonathan Robinson.
The band also performed “Drinking Side of Country,” written by the Covington twins and Medlock, which Bucky recorded in 2012 with Shooter Jennings.
Covington and crew closed the show with Lee Greenwood’s “I’m Proud to be an American,” which had the crowd on their feet in patriotic reverence.
Earlier in the week, Saban Films released the trailer for “Under the Stadium Lights,” a drama based on the ‘09 Abilene (Texas) High School football team starring Milo Gibson (son of Mel Gibson) and Laurence Fishburne and features Covington an assistant coach on the opposing team, the Longhorns, during the film’s final game.
The movie’s original title was “Brother’s Keeper.”
Last March, Covington released the music video for “Driving in the Dark,” which features scenes from the film.
