At a press conference on Wednesday, concert promoter Peter Aiken, founder of Aiken Promotions, revealed his excitement for Zach Bryan's upcoming three-date run at Phoenix Park this summer.

The Oklahoma country star will perform Phoenix Park on 20, 21 and 22 June, for a crowd in excess of 180,000 people.

Aiken also announced a limited number of extra tickets, as well as the support acts.

Fellow Oklahoma natives and country music band The Turnpike Troubadours have been slated as the support acts, alongside Americana singer Noeline Hofmann.

Discussing how Bryan's upcoming stint came together, Aiken says it was a "perfect fit".

"The dates were available and they worked. It all fell into place," he continues. "[Phoenix Park] hasn’t been used enough and it’s the second biggest park in the world. Throughout the world, these kinds of parks have been used more and more for concerts. It's very accessible, everybody knows where Phoenix Park is.

"It’s a bit more of a challenge for Zach, because there’s so many people from outside of Dublin who are coming to the gig. Normally for a big event, we’ll have about 50% of our audience coming from the Greater Dublin area, but for Zach it’s less than 11%. There’s more people coming from Cork than from Dublin".

Peter Aiken at Hole in the Wall, Phoenix Park to announce details of Zach Bryan shows. Copyright Abigail Ring/ hotpress.com

Performing a three-date run at one of Europe's largest outdoor parks speaks to Bryan's ever-growing popularity. Just three years ago, the singer played The Helix in Dublin before less than 500 lucky punters. Now, he'll take the stage in June to perform for about 60,000 people a night. Aiken notes that Bryan's career trajectory comes as no surprise.

"For his gig in the Helix, we had a pre-registration thing for people to buy tickets, " he says. "We opened at 10am, but had to close an hour later because we already had 10,000 people who pre-registered.

"So Zach’s run at Phoenix Park didn’t come out of the blue. We knew three years ago just how big this guy was. It’s going to be the biggest event of the summer.

Peter Aiken at Hole in the Wall, Phoenix Park to announce details of Zach Bryan shows. Copyright Abigail Ring/ hotpress.com

"His rise is unprecedented, not only concert-wise but for the kind of product he puts out. People discover him everyday. When you listen back to his stuff, he has so many great tracks and his storytelling - wherever it comes from, his personal experience or something he read about - is first class. He certainly resonates with Irish people".

Peter Aiken at Hole in the Wall, Phoenix Park to announce details of Zach Bryan shows. Copyright Abigail Ring/ hotpress.com

A self-professed fan, Aiken can certainly vouch for the loyal following Bryan's garnered in such a short time since announcing his major-label debut in 2022.

"I love him. I’ve seen him about five or six times," Aiken recalls. "I actually went to see him in Chicago a couple of years ago and half the people on the plane were from Dublin and going to see Zach. I remember on the way back, the pilot said over the intercom, “I hope you enjoyed the Zach Bryan concert”. It was brilliant. That’s when you know he’s big.

"Zach doesn’t look like a rockstar, he looks like he should be driving a truck, you know? To think he was in the U.S. Navy not five years ago! He was in Southeast Asia and put two songs on Youtube. Then he goes on to sell 10,000 tickets so quickly. One second you’re a nobody and you write a song, then everybody thinks you’re God’s gift. Nothing can prepare you for that.

"I was at a wedding in the North about a year ago, and everybody was up on top of the tables singing ‘I Remember Everything’. Afterwards, the band asked “any requests?”. The bride said, “yeah, play it again”. People love it. That’s the thing about Zach. They see something of themselves in him".

A limited number of extra tickets will go on sale this Friday, 21st March, at 9am and can be purchased here.