Photojournalist: Alondra

On Wednesday, April 1st, singer-songwriter Ricky Montgomery performed at The Wiltern in Los Angeles, California, to celebrate the 10th anniversary of his album Montgomery Ricky. The show was nostalgic and special in more ways than one for fans who attended. 

While the show had multiple highlights and fun moments throughout, like opener Bella Kay performing an acoustic version of Drake's “Hotline Bling,” Ricky throwing paper airplanes at the end of the show, and pranking the audience before the show started, the one that stood out the most was when fan Hailey Salinas was invited to perform on stage with Ricky.

 I was lucky enough to interview her after the show and get her perspective on how this special moment happened. 

Hailey is a music fan who has grown up surrounded by music her entire life, learning guitar at 12 years old and being heavily involved in her school's music program, along with attending local concerts with friends and family growing up. 

“Growing up, my dad used to take me to guitar lessons every Saturday, and I was heavily involved in my school's music programs. I played in just about every show or musical event that my school would put on. I grew up going to local concerts practically every weekend and have loved all kinds of music for as long as I can remember, whether it's listening to it or making it. To this day, I still make a huge effort to go to lots of concerts with my friends and see all of our favorite artists whenever they make their inevitable LA stop. It's always brought me closer to friends and family throughout my life.”

When asked how she discovered him and became a fan, she said, 

“I first found him through TikTok and really loved the songs I heard there, but it wasn't until a friend of mine actually had an extra ticket to one of his shows that I really became the fan I am today. That show was my first time hearing a lot of his other songs, and I just fell down the rabbit hole from there. I've never found an artist whom I can confidently say I truly love and know every word to their entire discography until Ricky.”

Before his show at The Wiltern, Hailey previously attended shows at the Anaheim House of Blues for his The Rick Tour: One Rick to Rule Them All Tour and his previous show at The Wiltern for his The Rick Tour: Another Rick in the Wall Tour.

When asked how it all happened, Hailey said, 

“Originally, I had seen a TikTok of Ricky bringing a fan up on stage at his St. Louis show, the first stop of his tour. I realized that I also knew the chords, so I left a comment on that post saying ‘Ricky, can I play this with you next at the LA show?:0’ and to my surprise he actually replied to me saying ‘only if you know all the chords,’ and from there I got to practicing! I decided to make a sign that said ‘Can I play Mr. Loverman with you? (I know the chords)’ in hopes it would get his attention.”  

Hailey mentioned struggling a little to get the sign into the venue, but eventually succeeded. Before the show, she looked at the planned setlist, and after his song “My Heart is Buried in Venice,” she raised the sign in an attempt to get his attention.

 “I knew that he played Mr. Loverman right after playing My Heart is Buried in Venice, so as soon as that song ended, I held up my sign. My friends and boyfriend made sure to all point to me during that moment as well, it was really sweet. As he was barely even introducing the pitch of bringing someone up, he interrupted himself, saying, ‘I already am seeing a sign,’ and everything just played out from there as he asked me the chords to the bridge. I shouted them out so fast out of excitement, and then he told me, ‘yeah, get up here,’ and had security escort me through backstage.”  

Hailey mentions feeling “a rush of emotions” as she headed backstage. The whole thing was a blur, yet real at the same time. 

“Being in the moment and on that stage felt insanely real. Looking out into the crowd, it was super dark, and then just Ricky and the stage were super bright.”

“It's so refreshing to see an artist who truly cares that deeply and puts in that much effort to connect with and create special moments with the fans. The incredibly sweet and positive fan culture within his fandom is a true memento of that. As if things couldn't get any better after playing with him and getting to keep the guitar pick he gave me, after the show I ended up actually being able to meet him as well. He signed my poster and vinyl and wrote ‘GREAT PLAYING!’ on it. He was so incredibly sweet and friendly. When we went to take a photo together, he even asked my boyfriend, ‘Can you take a picture of me and my friend Hailey?’ It was the sweetest thing ever. He went above and beyond to create such a special experience for me as a fan, and it was all just truly a day I'll never forget.” 

Ricky Montgomery's show at The Wiltern was more than just a concert. Ricky created an experience that fans will always remember. The high energy, pranks, and special on-stage moments fans experienced during the show made it the perfect 10-year celebration of Montgomery Ricky.

RICKY MONTGOMERY

photos by Alondra

BELLA KAY

photos by Alondra