Brandy Clark at the 2026 NYS Fair Brandy Clark played Chevy Court at the 2026 New York State Fair on Friday. (Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com) (Charlie Miller/(Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com))

In a time when LGBTQ+ rights are under renewed and sustained attack, it is that much more important for major cultural institutions, like the New York State Fair, to show support and provide a welcoming atmosphere.

Pride Day 2026, held on Friday, did just that.

An officially recognized day at the fair, LGBTQ+ Pride Day began with a rainbow flag raising and included a resource fair, ceremony and special live entertainment throughout the day and night. The capstone of which was two musical performances, one from an artist who is a musical icon, and one from an artist who should be.

In one of the better one-two punches at the fair this year, Brandy Clark performed on the Chevy Court Stage Friday evening, followed by Melissa Etheridge’s headlining performance at Suburban Park on Friday night.

If you don’t know who Brandy Clark is, don’t worry, your favorite country artist does.

Brandy Clark at the 2026 NYS Fair Brandy Clark played Chevy Court at the 2026 New York State Fair on Friday. (Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com) (Charlie Miller/(Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com))

Her songs have been recorded by Nashville legends and country radio stalwarts like Kenny Rogers, LeAnne Rimes, Darius Rucker, Miranda Lambert, Kacey Musgraves, Reba McEntire, and many more. Her most recent, self-titled album, features collaborations with legendary slide guitarist, Derek Trucks, the band Lucius and Brandi Carlile, who served as the album’s producer.

Brandy Clark opened her set with Crazy Women. Originally written for, and recorded by LeAnne Rimes in 2011, Clark’s version has a more downhome, bluegrass country feel.

She seamlessly transitioned between the first few songs of her set without a musical break, each one an eloquent 3 ½ minute short story, ripe with witty details and small town observations.

Accompanying herself on her Martin acoustic, Brandy Clark was joined by Amanda McCoy on bass, Gabe Burdulis on a variety of guitars, and Aaron Nelson on drums and occasional mandolin.

Brandy Clark at the 2026 NYS Fair Bass player Amanda McCoy plays with Brandy Clark at Chevy Court at the 2026 New York State Fair on Friday. (Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com) (Charlie Miller/(Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com)) Brandy Clark at the 2026 NYS Fair Bass player Amanda McCoy plays with Brandy Clark at Chevy Court at the 2026 New York State Fair on Friday. (Charlie Miller/(Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com))

The sound produced felt significantly bigger than the four musicians on stage. I was particularly impressed by Burdulis, who shifted between atmospheric slide guitar, snappy plucked Tele twang, and moving guitar solos.

McCoy and Burdulis provided background vocals, with their three part harmonies being particularly notable on Pray to Jesus. One of my personal favorites, it’s a song that is equal parts earnest and ironic: “Don’t wanna be buried in debt or in sin/So we pray to Jesus and we play the lotto”

Clark’s vocals, which were flawless throughout, sounded powerful, but understated, and always served the storytelling of the song.

Brandy Clark at the 2026 NYS Fair Guitar player Gabe Burdulis plays with Brandy Clark at Chevy Court at the 2026 New York State Fair on Friday. (Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com) (Charlie Miller/(Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com))

I sometimes get myself in trouble for arguing what is and what isn’t good country music: Brandy Clark is country music at its absolute best.

She’s won multiple Grammys, been nominated for many more, she’s received Tony nominations, CMA awards, and was recently named one of the “30 Greatest Living Songwriters” by The New York Times.

If there was any justice in the music industry, Brandy Clark would be headlining venues like the Amp, but she received a standing ovation from the small crowd at Chevy Court and the intimacy provided a richer experience for those who were lucky enough to know to be there.

Brandy Clark at the 2026 NYS Fair Brandy Clark played Chevy Court at the 2026 New York State Fair on Friday. (Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com) (Charlie Miller/(Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com))

Melissa Etheridge provided a bluesier, heavier, and somewhat quirkier concert experience for a crowd of 7,500 fans at the Suburban Park Friday night. (Fair officials did not provide crowd estimates for Brandy Clark.)

She opened the concert with the line “Don’t you want a woman who can rock your soul?”

Part plea to a lover, part call to action, it set the tone for the evening.

Don’t You Want a Woman is a powerful rock song, complete with a spoken breakdown where Etheridge celebrated the beautiful weather, the rising full moon, and quipped, “Happy gay day. Be gay.” This was followed by a powerful build and a bridge that celebrated Eve’s emancipation from Eden.

That iconic voice is still intact. It’s hard not to contrast Friday’s Indigo Girls concert at Beak & Skiff earlier this week. They are roughly the same age, co-headlined a tour in 2024 and 2025, and occupy adjacent musical worlds.

Time has not only been kind to Etheridge, but has only enhanced her renowned, raspy vocals, which sounded like well-worn leather jacket.

May all our favorite artists be so lucky.

Etheridge’s career has had a fascinating arc. She is simultaneously an underground artistic icon, and a soft rock radio stalwart. For better and for worse, this contradiction was on display Friday night.

7 of the 15 songs on her set list were from her new record Rise, released in March 2026. From a musical perspective they sounded great, but I was sitting with the casuals in the back and not all of them resonated the way they did with the die-hards up front.

I personally loved the grungier Bein’ Alive, a celebration of life after 60. Tomboy, another new one, was a meaningful act of reclamation, reframing the epithet from her younger days, and ended, unexpectedly, with a kazoo solo.

Melissa Etheridge took a number of long, great guitar solos throughout the night. The solo/vocal climax in To Be a Woman, another new one, received a large round of applause.

Brandy Clark at the 2026 NYS Fair Brandy Clark played Chevy Court at the 2026 New York State Fair on Friday. (Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com) (Charlie Miller/(Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com))

My favorite bit of guitar work was the soupy, hazy Memphis blues sound on the Albert King classic, Born Under a Bad Sign.

As the night ended we heard those soft rock radio stalwarts: Come to My Window, I Want to Come Over, and I’m the Only One were crowd favorites.

Rather than allowing this momentum reach a satisfying climax, she announced from the stage, “I have one more new one,” and ended the concert with a piano ballad.

The die-hards sang along up front while the casuals slowly filtered out.

Part way through the night, Etheridge shared a story, “In the early 90’s they’d say, ‘Melissa I love your music.’ Then they’d say, ‘Melissa, my mom loves your music.’ Now they say, ‘Melissa, my crazy grandma loves your music.’ Here’s to all the crazy grandmas.”

This is the thing about crazy grandmas: sometimes their stories are a little long-winded, but if you indulge them, you are always better off for it.