Last night, Wednesday, July 9, Dave Matthews Band took the stage at Pine Knob Music Theatre in Clarkston, Mich., approximately 40 miles outside of Detroit. As in past visits, the band brought out a regional guest, Usher’s musical director and previous live collaborator, Valdez Brantley, to sit in on select songs. Wednesday evening’s concert presented another chapter in their collective crossover, following a 2024 sit-in. 

Before their latest meet-up, Dave Matthews Band had welcomed Brantley to sit in during their July 26, 2024 staging at Pine Knob Music Theatre, where he contributed to the band’s 2005 release, “Break Free,” followed by an even earlier track from the band’s archive, 1994’s Under the Table and Dreaming cut, “What Would You Say.” Both songs featured the musician playing the keytar, an instrument he had returned to during last night’s performance. 

During their most recent live performance, the band worked through nine selections before their guest arrived. Brantley took the stage before the start of Cameo’s “Word Up!” But he ultimately left, only to retake the stage toward the song’s midsection, cutting it up on keytar, and remaining clear through the following number, 1993’s Remember Two Things feature, “Tripping Billies.” 

Brantley’s appearance represented a continuation of high-profile sit-ins that have popped up during the Dave Matthews Band’s ongoing summer tour. Previously, Jason Crosby (Jackson Browne, Oteil & Friends, Crosby Collective, Spirit Guide) took the honors during the band’s June 3 concert at PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, N.J., enacting fiddling flair on “Pig” and “Ants Marching.”

The trend continued when the band brought out another guest, Kebbi Williams, during their time in Alpharetta, Ga. The Tedeschi Trucks Band’s mainstay contributed to “Jimi Thing” on saxophone. Brantley’s role during last night’s show kept the surprise alive, enticing fans with potential for unknown guests, and added concert panache.

 

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Jeff Coffin (@jeffcoffin)

Dave Matthews Band 

Pine Knob Music Theatre – Clarkston, Mich. 

July 9, 2025 

Set: Dancing Nancies, Funny the Way It Is, Warehouse, Fool to Think, Satellite, Madman’s Eyes, Seven, The Stone, The Only Thing, Word Up!+, Tripping Billies+, Cry Freedom, Fool in the Rain, Say Goodbye, Blackjack, Looking for a Vein, You Might Die Trying, Grey Street

Enc.: Come Devil&, So Right 

Notes:

+ With Valdez Brantley

& Dave Matthews solo