Texas-born country star Koe Wetzel to perform grand opening concert at Tarleton’s new EECU Center.

Graphic/TSU Media Relations

TSU Media Relations

Special to Beneath the Surface News

Texas-born singer-songwriter Koe Wetzel, a proud Tarleton State University alum and former student-athlete, will perform the grand opening concert at the new EECU Center in Stephenville on Saturday, Sept. 13.

Presale tickets will be available here beginning at 9 a.m. on Monday, July 28, ahead of the general on-sale tickets beginning at 10 a.m. Friday, Aug. 1.

“Stephenville is where it all started for me – from the football field at Tarleton to the dive bars where I first started playing shows,” Wetzel said.

“Coming back to open the EECU Center on campus feels like one big full-circle moment. I’m fired up to be part of something this special at a place that means so much to me.” 

Wetzel was a linebacker for the Texans in 2011, with Stephenville also serving as the birthplace of his music career.

The EECU Center is a state-of-the-art facility with a capacity of 7,500 with premium seating including suites and loge boxes.

“We are ecstatic to welcome Koe Wetzel for the grand opening concert at the EECU Center,” said Jeremy Barron, executive director of the EECU Center.

“Koe’s musical roots began here, and he has a special place with the students in the heart of this campus. We’re thrilled that the first concert to open this beautiful new facility will be played by a Tarleton State Texan who truly bleeds purple.”

Wetzel never met a genre wall he couldn’t tear down.

The Texas singer-songwriter has earned a rabid audience for his songs that mix country, rock, hip-hop, and even Nineties grunge. 

With his defining fifth studio album, 9 Lives, released in 2024 via Columbia Records, Wetzel earned recognition on several major year-end best-of lists, including Rolling Stone, Billboard, the Tennessean and more, with the Los Angeles Times naming lead single “High Road” (feat. Jessie Murph) as the No. 8 best song of 2024 across all genres.

The single not only marked Wetzel’s debut at Country radio, it also held the No. 1 spot for five weeks and became his fastest song to reach the RIAA Platinum milestone to date.

Previously, his 2016 album Noise Complaint endeared him to fans with its no-holds-barred lyrics about drunken nights, broken hearts and stints in jail, and included the Gold-certified hits “Love” (feat. Parker McCollum), “Something to Talk About” plus the infamous “February 28, 2016.”

Wetzel’s 2020 major label debut, Sellout, only furthered his legend with the Platinum-certified “Drunk Driving” and “Good Die Young” plus the Gold-certified “Kuntry & Wistern.”

The 2022 follow-up, Hell Paso, hit No. 3 on Billboard’s Country Albums and spawned hits on both the country and rock charts, including the Gold-certified “Creeps” and “Cabo.”

To date, Wetzel has amassed 3.7 billion total streams and has created a genuine experience with his live concerts, which he describes as “total chaos.”