CONROE, Texas — He's opening the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo on Tuesday, but Parker McCollum dished out chicken at a Conroe Raising Cane's on Monday.
McCollum, who's from Conroe, worked a shift as a cashier at the Raising Cane's on West Davis Street on Monday from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
In addition to dishing out chicken, he also gave away tickets to his show.
“I am a fan of Parker’s music and we have become friends over the years. Very happy for him to be headlining the rodeo and working the Cane’s drive-thru in his hometown of Conroe, and giving away 20 tickets from Cane’s,” Raising Cane’s Founder and CEO Todd Graves said.
Who is McCollum?
McCollum, 30, became a RodeoHouston fan favorite after performing for a crowd of 73,243 last year, the fourth highest-paid concert attendance in 2022, according to HLSR.
The singer/songwriter grew up in Conroe and cut his teeth at landmark country bars, including Stubbs, Billy Bobs and Nutty Browns.
On his website, McCollum is described as a "brash young man with a taste for Rodney Crowell, Todd Snider and James McMurtry who had just enough Houston gangster rap in the water to develop a swagger that’s miles from the good ole boy patina so many of his peers embody."
McCollum's first big hit was “Pretty Heart," which went platinum. The young star plays to the beat of a different drummer.
“I want to have Luke Bryan success, singing Chris Knight-caliber songs,” he declares. “To have longevity, you can’t sacrifice integrity to get on the radio. People know the difference, look at Willie, look at Strait. I knew I could do Texas and never leave, or come to Nashville and do the pop-country thing. My goal is to ride the middle.”
McCollum admits he went through a wild stage as his popularity soared.
“There was no shortage of women. There were plenty around, random girls, but people you don’t care about – and they don’t care about you. It was a lot of whiskey and smoking cigarettes to fill up the space. But I started thinking, ‘What am I gonna do when I get a little further along?’”
More Opening Day plans
For the first time, the Rodeo will host a special Opening Day celebration that highlights H-Town with a parade and other Houston-themed activities throughout the day.
They'll give away 10,000 custom-made Howdy bobbleheads for early arrivers that morning, beginning at 10 a.m.
“Everyone looks forward to the upcoming Rodeo season all year long, and we hope all Rodeo fans will circle Opening Day on their 2023 calendars, as this will be a day you won’t want to miss,” President and CEO Chris Boleman said. Rodeo president and CEO.