MUSIC

Mason Ramsey crowd-surfs with inflatable horse at Nashville concert

Dave Paulson
The Tennessean

One year after he yodeled in an Illinois Walmart and became an internet sensation, Mason Ramsey is still crossing new accomplishments off his list.

On Wednesday, it was getting to crowd-surf while riding in inflatable horse — while also playing his first-ever headlining concert in Nashville. 

The 12-year-old country singer played a sold-out club show at Exit/In, a historic rock and country room that’s hosted tons of greats on their way up, from Billy Joel to R.E.M. 

And against the odds, Ramsey might still be on his ascent, too.

While his Walmart video stopped being a go-to internet gag after a few weeks, the 7th-grader is a genuine talent, and he has spent the last year building a country music career out of Nashville. 

Weeks after going viral, he signed a record deal with Atlantic Records and Nashville-based Big Loud. In July, they released his debut EP, “Famous,” with tunes written by Music Row hotshots and a member of Florida Georgia Line. He has since opened for that country duo during their Las Vegas residency, sang the national anthem at Nashville’s Nissan Stadium, and stood in the circle of the Grand Ole Opry.

And along with his first EP and first tour, he can also boast his own community of fans, and they’re notably young. Not as young as Ramsey, mind you, but the Exit/In was packed with college kids — which makes sense, considering it was Gen-Z that turned Ramsey into a meme. 

They hoisted beers and smartphones high as Ramsey took the stage, donning a sparkly western suit and a cowboy hat. Audience members beamed their friends in via FaceTime when he sang Hank Williams’ “Lovesick Blues” — the same song from his viral clip.

Mason Ramsey crowd-surfed in an inflatable horse at Nashville's Exit/In on Wednesday, April 24, 2019.

When he paused to have some bottled water — 11 songs in — they chanted, “Chug! Chug! Chug!”

Ramsey shook his head. 

“You guys are looking at the wrong person to do that.”

That moment aside, the few hundred people gathered at Exit/In handled Ramsey with kid gloves — especially when they (and at least one security guard) transported him and his horse halfway across the room and back to the stage. They applauded every guitar pose and tip of his hat, and cheered him on when he blanked on a few lyrics. 

As he shared with the crowd, Ramsey has been doing some songwriting of his own. He played an unreleased tune that he said was the first song he’d written, “Puddle of Love,” as well as a few new ones he’d written with Craig Wiseman, his Big Loud boss and country songwriting giant.

“It’s been a year already, and I can’t believe it,” Ramsey said. 

“And you know, none of this would have happened unless Big Loud helped me, or my family. Grandpa taught me to sing, which I’m very thankful for. And I’m thankful for you guys coming out to see my show.”

He balanced out his 14-song set with a bunch of classic country covers, most of them stemming from Hank Williams (before going viral, Ramsey was known as “Lil Hank Williams”). Along with “I Saw The Light,” “Hey Good Lookin’” “Long Gone Lonesome Blues” (which he played completely on his own), and Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire,” he played the original tunes on his “Famous” EP. The title track was Ramsey’s first single, and also what he sang during his inflatable ride across the Exit/In.

“I’m just a kid who likes to sing,” he told the audience. “I’m sure there are other people that are better than me, but you know what? God gave us talents, so let’s use ‘em, right?”