The War and Treaty‘s surprise guest appearance at Zach Bryan‘s record-setting concert Saturday (Sept. 27) in Ann Arbor, Mich., has led to a conflict with a nonprofit in suburban Chicago.
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The married duo, based in Nashville but originally from Albion, Mich., joined Bryan for a performance of “Hey Driver,” a song The War and Treaty recorded with him on his self-titled 2023 album. The show’s attendance — 112,408 according to AEG Presents — made it the largest ticketed event ever in the U.S., breaking a record established by George Strait 15 months prior in Texas. It also set a merchandise sales record with $5 million.
However, the group had been booked to perform at Marty’s Barn Party for Equestrian Connection, a Lake Forest, Ill., organization that uses horses as therapy to “positively impact the lives of thousands of mentally, emotionally and physically challenged children and adults.” The War and Treaty pulled out just hours before the event — three according to the organization, five according to the group — which has led to a series of scathing recriminations on social media.
“Trying not to judge but hard to understand why the band would cancel their paid commitment or at least give us sufficient prior notice,” the organization posted. “Still trying to process the lack of empathy.” Marty’s Barn Party organizer Diana Finley Schnell wrote in a separate post that the War and Treaty no-showed for its sound check without any notice, and that the Equestrian Connection didn’t learn they wouldn’t be showing up until a call was placed to the booking agent. “They said they won’t be here now because they got a better offer for a tour. I’ve never seen such a sad display of unprofessionalism in my life…. How can you confirm the day before and then to not show up or even contact the event to tell them. We still wouldn’t know if we hadn’t called their agent…If I ever see them at a show and have the chance I am doing something to destroy their show.”
The sold-out charity event did go on as planned with two Chicagoland groups, the John Koziol Band and the According to Kate Country Band, brought in to take The War and Treaty’s place. Equestrian Connection has not responded to Billboard‘s requests for additional comment.
Acknowledging to Billboard that “it was a hard decision to make,” the War and Treaty’s Michael and Tanya Trotter pushed back at the way the situation is being portrayed.
The Trotters said on Tuesday (Sept. 30) that they received an initial call from Bryan’s father on Friday night inquiring if they would want to sing the National Anthem as part of the show at Michigan Stadium, but a formal invitation did not come until Saturday morning, after the group had arrived in Chicago. After consulting with management and their booking agency, The War and Treaty decided to head to Ann Arbor but maintain they notified the Marty’s Barn Party organizers immediately.
Per the contract, the War and Treaty handled its own transportation, while Equestrian Connection was to provide lodging, ground transportation and food.
“We never checked into the hotel, we never went to the venue, never ate any food, never did any of that,” Michael Trotter said. “(The event organizer) is out there saying we stole their money, ate their food, checked into hotels, all this stuff about us that’s just not true.” The $50,000 performance fee was refunded, he said; the group made a separate $5,000 donation and provided a video for the event apologizing for its absence and explaining why. “We were very transparent that Zach Bryan called, this was the offer, we returned their money, made a donation, tried to help fill the (performance) position,” a War and Treaty source close to the situation added. The group did make some use of shuttle services the charity provided and has offered to reimburse that expense, according to the Trotters.
The reason for the decision, they added, related to their close friendship with Bryan and the significance of the song and the collaboration in their career. Bryan namechecks Trotter at the start of the track — “This is your song Mike, let’s do it” — and while song itself muses on the experience and consequences of the nomadic career of a touring performer, the Trotters also relate it to Michael’s publicly acknowledged struggles with PTSD after his military service in Iraq.
“While we were (on stage) I was keeping in mind the times when I was standing on helipads in Iraq, standing on the banks of the Euphrates River being shot at…where I thought I wasn’t going to be able to do this dream of mine to be a musician and recording artist,” Trotter explains. “I never imagined being in a stadium of 112,000 people-plus singing a song that Zach Bryan and the War and Treaty have done together. Being able to represent the U.S. Army — all my battle buddies, all the veterans — (and) represent my city, Albion, in the state of Michigan, with my wife and our friend and partaking in his success and being part of that…we had to do it.
“In hindsight I wish that Zach would’ve asked us a lot earlier,” Michael Trotter explained, “but, I mean, it’s Michigan and it’s the biggest concert in U.S. history. You don’t really get that opportunity many times in your life.”
Tanya Trotter added that, “Was it the best decision we’ve ever made and how we did it? No, but when I look back at our journey and everything we’ve gone through and the banner he waves and we wave as a couple that battled disabilities, for me it was something that was rewarding to experience.”