On Tuesday night Post Malone brought his ongoing F-1 Trillion road show to the largest rodeo in Texas, mere months after headlining the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion for two nights in October.
Posty is so incredibly popular right now could have opened and closed RodeoHouston in 2025 and he could have sold out both shows. The streets around NRG Stadium turned feral just before sundown as the parking lots reached capacity. This was easily the hottest ticket of the season.
The whole world seems to have gone country — yet again — and the 29-year-old Post Malone followed suit this past year, debuting a new Hank Jr. Jr. persona to curious audiences with his latest album F-1 Trillion. When the Texas-bred rapper started showing out in Wrangler jeans, turkey feathers, turquoise jewelry, pearl snap shirts, and five-figure cowboy boots, some outlaw gatekeepers and traditional hardliners dismissed him as a scene poser. It’s a familiar story, one that Beyonce experienced herself with the Cowboy Carter project, her own inventive take on the fluid country genre.
[By the way, the last time Malone was at NRG Stadium he was performing with Beyonce during the halftime show of the Houston Texans ritualistic Christmas Day sacrifice to the Baltimore Ravens. While he was in town, he made sure a lucky bartender had a wonderful Christmas. But I digress.]
Malone’s collection of expertly crafted pop-country featuring voices as diverse as Billy Strings, Sierra Ferrell, and Blake Shelton had no business being so satisfying. While other acts are aping the spirit of ‘90s hat acts, Malone seems to be blazing a trail of his own, digging into the earnest hooks of early ‘00s pop-country he grew up on and fusing it with his own innate talent for juicy hooks and tobacco-stained wordplay.
“Wrong Ones” kicked off the proceedings on Tuesday night with Malone taking a long walk from the corner of the stadium to the starred stage. A country-fried version of the buoyant “Circles” followed, with a barefoot Posty stalking the stage dressed like a RodeoHouston volunteer that just got home from a long shift doing parking lot traffic control.
“I’m doing my best not to cuss tonight, ladies and gentlemen,” joked Malone, obviously looking to make a return down the line. Soon enough, he broke his own rule and let a few tender and complimentary expletives escape through his microphone. Judging by the size of the crowd, RodeoHouston might have looked the other way.
Malone spent “Pour Me A Drink” walking the stage crooning with his trademark red Solo cup in hand. 2018’s breakthrough single “Psycho” came reimagined as a soaring anthem, and “White Iverson” began with a few tasteful honky tonk piano licks. It’s impressive how well some of Malone’s earliest singles lend themselves to a pop-country sheen. Even his updated take on “Better Now” sounded like it came straight from Nashville’s Music Row. “Never Love You Again” — sans Sierra Ferrell — was lifted by some fiddle from his virtuosic band member Lillie Mae. Her fiddle remained a constant, steady counter to Malone all night.
It wouldn’t be a RodeoHouston show without another George Strait cover, and Malone delivered his own faithful take on “Ocean Front Property,” to the approving screams of thousands. With the amount of Strait covers this year, it wouldn’t be a surprise if this is some sort of sneaky, conspicuous way of teasing the return of King George to NRG Stadium in 2026.
“Congratulations” was the biggest jolt of the night, full of manic pyro and crying guitar. It was a victory lap, a proof of concept. Sporting his brand-new RodeoHouston belt buckle, Malone utilized every inch of the stage to deliver the most bombastic, uplifting show of 2025.
Setlist
Wrong Ones
Circles
What Don’t Belong To Me
Pour Me A Drink
Psycho
White Iverson
Never Love You Again
Ocean Front Property (George Strait cover)
Better Now
I Had Some Help
Rockstar
Congratulations
Sunflower
