Oklahoma country star Zach Bryan to donate merchandise profits from OKC concert to Barnsdall

Oklahoma country star Zach Bryan announced Wednesday that all profits from his merchandise sales at his upcoming Friday night show in Oklahoma City will be donated to help the northeastern Oklahoma community of Barnsdall recover from a recent EF4 tornado.

The Grammy winner, who hails from Oologah, is making his debut at Oklahoma City's Paycom Center with back-to-back shows Friday, May 17 and Saturday, May 18 as part of his "The Quittin Time Tour." The profits from merch sales from Night 1 of his two-night OKC concert stand will go to tornado relief, according to his post on X (formerly Twitter).

"I’m not saying this for credit, I’m just letting anyone going to the show know where your money will go after the show," Bryan said in the social media post. "I love you guys and I’m so stoked to play"

The devastating tornado tore through the small city of Barnsdall in Osage County on May 6 before leaving destruction in Bartlesville to the northeast. The tornado resulted in two deaths.

It's the second time the rural community of 1,400 people has been affected by a tornado this year, after another tornado damaged homes there on April 1.

Zach Bryan's sold-out OKC shows expected to draw more than 30,000 fans

Bryan will perform both his OKC shows in the round with a center stage, and his Paycom Center stand is expected to bring in more than 17,000 guests each night.

Doors open at 5:30 p.m., and the concerts start at 7 p.m. both nights.

Australian indie folk band The Middle East and Georgia musician Levi Turner will open both OKC dates.

“OKC is proud to host Zach Bryan in his home state this weekend,” said Paycom Center General Manager Chris Semrau in a statement. “It’s a real testament to the support of the community and the success of Zach’s career to be able to host not one but two sold-out shows.”

Very limited tickets remain for each show, and both are expected to sell out. For tickets and information for the OKC concerts, go to https://www.paycomcenter.com/events/detail/zach-bryan.

The concerts are expected to be among some of the highest attended shows in the OKC venue's history.

Bryan is expected to become just the fourth recording artist to have sold more than 30,000 tickets across two or more shows at Paycom Center, following fellow Oklahoman Garth Brooks, Luke Combs and Drake.

What should fans know before they go to Zach Bryan's OKC shows?

Paycom Center staffers are working with various downtown OKC organizations and businesses in preparation for the influx of visitors for Bryan's back-to-back shows this weekend.

Extensive planning has gone into preparing the arena, with increased event staffing, additional food and beverage points of purchase and focus on overall guest experience, according to a news release.

Fans should be aware of the large number of ticketholders attending and plan accordingly for parking downtown and going through security check lines to enter the venue. Concertgoers will pass through metal detectors for entry, and all bags are subject to search.

Paycom Center’s bag policy prohibits any bags larger than 6 inches by 9 inches by 2 inches and forbids professional cameras, selfie sticks, tablets and more. For a full list of restricted items, go to www.paycomcenter.com/security-policies.

Following his Paycom Center debut, Bryan will return to his home state later this year to play three consecutive nights — Dec. 12, 13 and 14 — at Tulsa's BOK Center.

For ticket information about Bryan's upcoming shows, visit https://www.zachbryan.com/tour.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Zach Bryan to donate merch profits Barnsdall, Oklahoma tornado victims