In August of 2021, it was announced that The Judds would be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2021. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the announcement was made later in the year than usual, so the ceremony was to be held on May 1st, 2022. As they prepared for the big day, they announced The Final Tour with Martina McBride on April 11th, 2022. That night, Naomi and Wynonna returned to the spotlight as a duo with an amazing performance of “Love Can Build a Bridge” on the CMT Awards that only fueled the excitement for the tour. Then, tragedy struck. On the eve of their Hall of Fame induction, Naomi Judd committed suicide. The emotional ceremony went on as scheduled the next day, as Ashley and Wynonna were on hand as Ricky Skaggs introduced The Judds at the medallion ceremony.
A few months later in September 2022, it was announced that The Final Tour would still go on, but with a series of guest performers filling in for Naomi. Then, in October the tour was extended with new dates into 2023. In December, the special guests were announced for each show, with Brandi Carlile slated to be the special guest for the final show to be held at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, FL.
Martina McBride, with Carolyn Dawn Johnson as a background singer, got the night started with an opening set before Wynonna took the stage to kick the show off with “Had a Dream (For the Heart)” and “Give A Little Love” before she brought her guests out for “Girls Night Out.” The crowd erupted in a roar when not only Martina McBride and Brandi Carlile came out, but surprise guest Tanya Tucker walked out too!
The rest of the show was an emotional roller coaster as Wynonna used her powerful voice to remind fans that she still had a lot left in the tank should she decide to go back to touring as a solo act in the future. At times she had her guests on stage helping her out, and at others she went into alpha mode by half-jokingly kicking them off stage so she could “have the spotlight to herself.”
Throughout the show, video clips of her performing with Naomi played in the background, and she got emotional a few times while reminiscing on the past as she told stories between songs. Midway through the set, she had the band come out to the front of the stage for an acoustic performance of “Guardian Angels,” “Flies on the Butter (You Can’t Go Home)” and “Young Love.” During “Young Love,” her husband, who is part of the band, sang with her, and stole a kiss towards the end. After the acoustic part of the show was over, she jokingly scolded him that the face and hair were off limits, as discussed every night in their pre-show meeting, but since it was the last show, she was okay with it.
Compared to other shows on the tour, it looks like she added a couple of extra songs to the set list, and closed her main set with “Love Can Build a Bridge.” As she struggled through it, I don’t think there was a dry eye in the house by the time it was over. She came back out for the encore, with a solo acoustic performance of “Mama He’s Crazy” which turned into a big sing-along with the crowd. She then brought Tanya Tucker out, who brought down the house with ‘Delta Dawn.” Next was “Grandpa (Tell Me ‘Bout the Good Old Days)” before she brought everyone back out on stage for “Why Not Me” to close the show and the tour.
After singing the final note, Wynonna took a bow with Tanya Tucker, Brandi Carlile, Martina McBride, and Carolyn Dawn Johnson before stoically marching off the stage as the band finished the song and the guest artists stayed behind on stage waving to the crowd. It was a spectacular show, and a fitting send off for one of the greats.
Here is the full set list from the final show of The Judds Final Tour:
- Had a Dream (For the Heart)
- Give a Little Love
- Girls Night Out
- Rockin’ With the Rhythm of the Rain
- Love Is Alive
- I Know Where I’m Going
- Guardian Angels
- Flies on the Butter (You Can’t Go Home)
- Young Love
- Rock Bottom
- I Wanna Know What Love Is (Foreigner cover)
- River of Time
- Born to Be Blue
- Turn It Loose
- She Is His Only Need
- I Saw The Light
- No One Else On Earth
- Love Can Build a Bridge
- Mama He’s Crazy
- Delta Dawn (Tanya Tucker)
- Grandpa (Tell Me ‘Bout the Good Old Days)
- Why Not Me
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