Dierks Bentley on His Summer Tour, and Picking Acts Like Hero Ricky Skaggs and Kaitlin Butts as Support: ‘Selfishly, These Are People That I Wanna Go Watch Their Show’

Raluca Maniță

Free and easy down the road he goes… but not unencumbered by company. Because country star Dierks Bentley is nothing if not a solid curator of younger opening acts and heroes alike. His summer Off the Map Tour, a 12-city outing, has some of the best triple bills you could find in or out of country or roots music this year, bringing in a number of acts that skew toward traditional country or bluegrass — including Country Hall of Famer Ricky Skaggs and his band Kentucky Thunder as direct support