Hunter Hayes Reveals First Round Of ‘21’ Dates

Hunter Hayes unveils seven destinations for his “21” tour featuring the country performer scaling down his arena show and getting up-close-and-personal with his fans. Nashville singer/songwriter Ryan Lafferty will open on most dates.

Photo: Dave Needle

Irvine Meadows Amphitheatre, Irvine, Calif.

The fall adventure on college campuses is all about Hayes’ hit single “21,” that has streamed more than 21 million times since its release earlier this year. The tour will eventually grow to 21 dates, although today’s press blast names only seven cities.

Hayes turned to Spotify to help him route the tour. The online music streamer crunched its numbers and determined the college markets where the country star is the strongest.

Hayes’ biggest fans in the target markets will receive pre-sale access. His top 21 fans in each market will receive such prizes as early entry, meet-and-greets, signed memorabilia and other goodies. The fan who streams Hayes’ music the most in each market will be awarded a one-year sub to Spotify Premium.

“I’ve been calling this the year to be brave, because we’ve really been pushing ourselves to try new things, whether it’s how we release new music or how we go on tour,” Hayes said. “Our fans are everything to us, and it’s so incredible we have a way to reward our biggest fans to create even more cool opportunities together.”

Here are the dates, with 14 more locations to be announced:

Oct. 22 – Cullowhee, N.C., Western Carolina University
Oct. 23 – Kent, Ohio, Kent State University
Oct. 24 – West Point, N.Y., Eisenhower Hall Theatre
Oct. 29 – West Lafayette, Ind., Purdue University
Nov. 5 – Bowling Green, Ky., Western Kentucky University
Nov. 14 – Norman, Okla., University Of Oklahoma
Nov. 19 – Winston-Salem, N.C., Wake Forest University

Ryan Lafferty appears on all shows except Nov. 5 when special guest Kelsea Ballerini performs. Ticket information to be announced. Head over to HunterHayes.com for more information.