Memphis, TN - Mempho Music Fest
October 5th, 2025
Memphis, TN
Radians Amphitheater at the Memphis Botanic Garden
Preface: Fair warning, this is going to be a long read! If you don’t want to take the time to read it all you should take one thing away: Mempho Music Festival is the best festival we’ve ever been to!
Mr. Matthew Rowland
Show Notes: In a rare change to the setlist we didn’t hear Follow You to Virgie, while this wasn’t an issue for us it did seem to be mentioned by folks around us. Another thing that was different from recent shows is that like many festivals there was also no second stage for the acoustic part of the show (which was limited to just Lady May for this setlist). The remainder of the setlist was lined with the usual suspects from the new album, Eatin’ Big Time, Dirty Ought Trill (which is creeping its way closer to the top after being played 3rd here), Bitin’ List, Watch Out, Down Under and Snipe Hunt. Additionally we saw I Swear (to God), All Your’n, Jersey Giant, Old Country Church, Whitehouse Road, Honky Tonk Flame, Way of the Triune God, and House Fire. An abridged setlist due to the hour and 30 minute slot was not really noticed as the band flew through these songs to squeeze in as many as possible it seemed and it was filled with fan favorites.
It is also becoming apparent now how huge of a song Jersey Giant is and how big of a song Bitin’ List is becoming. This was the first time where we could feel that the entire crowd knew every word to Jersey Giant. Previously the crowds seemed to pick up at the start of the chorus and taper off during the middle of the verses but this crowd didn’t, full voice and clear singing could be heard throughout the entire song. Jersey Giant was followed by Bitin’ List which, in our opinion, has been the quickest song of Tyler’s to gain popularity that we’ve ever seen while seeing them live.
Bitin’ List is a CLEAR fan favorite. The second this song starts the entire crowd turns into a party type mode and is jumping and yelling as if they’d never done before. The most similar we can recall was seeing Triune God at Red Rocks but Bitin’ List carries that same excitement to EVERY show. To imagine it at home just think about when your dad turned on “Don’t Stop Believing” for the 20,000th time and everyone in the house just started yelling it as if it was the greatest thing ever created - this is the exact same way everyone in the crowd is reacting to Bitin’ List.
Obviously we haven’t talked to Tyler about the lyrics and how he views them in complexity to his other songs, but he seemingly knows they’re less complex and thus more catchy because Tyler himself has made note at a couple of shows about how repetitive the chorus is and encouraged everyone to sing along. As many listeners we love the deep lyrics that Tyler puts out on nearly every song but making an exception for Bitin’ List being a little less deep and a little more funny is easily done once you see this song live. As Daniel’s brother told us after the Camden show “Tyler Childers has a hit on his hands.”
We would be absolutely shocked if this doesn’t quickly become one of the most streamed songs for the band and even more shocked if it somehow finds its way off a setlist anytime soon.
Venue Notes: Mempho Fest, everyone in the room owes you a drink of your choice! My God! Free parking a 3 minute walk from the entrance? Who does that?! Parking where you can already hear the music being played if you want to tailgate? Who does that?! A well lit walkway back to your car, a will call next to the entrance with enough staff to actually get people through quickly, a huge sign so you know exactly where to go, multiple entry lines with multiple helping at each so everything goes smooth? WHO DOES THAT?! MEMPHO FEST!
Everything wrong you’ve ever experienced at a festival DOESN’T exist here! Bathrooms as soon as you walk in the gate so you don’t have to rush around looking for them after chugging some beverages in the parking lot. Merch instantly to your left as you walk in so you can grab whatever you need before heading down toward the stage. Food instantly to your right so that you can get your food before heading down to the stage. Food and merch on opposite sides so the lines don’t mingle and cause confusion. Seating littered throughout the middle of the festival grounds. DJs playing throughout the day in the middle of the grounds so even if you’re eating you’re being entertained. Average, or below average, prices for food and beverages at a festival. Ample food options, pizza, chicken bowls, vegan options, whatever you want, even popsicles! Bars closer to the stage so you don’t have to walk all the way out and miss the action just to grab another drink. Free water at the refill station located near the food vendors. The two stages are only a couple hundred yards apart but the sound doesn’t bleed over hardly at all so even if two people were on at the same time it wouldn’t be an issue. There’s semi-permanent flooring laid down to make it more level at the mainstage. And on top of all of these amazing things, the ADA platform is close enough to the stage that ADA goers can actually get a good view of the show. The Lexus VIP box area is tucked away so as to not block GA goers view but still providing a close and unobstructed view of the main stage. Every single thing about this festival was seemingly well thought out. If we could even come up with one negative it’d be that the grounds are somewhat dusty but that’s easily overcome with a bandana (which we believe were being given out somewhere for free but this is unconfirmed, we just saw a ton of people with the same bandana on at different parts of the show).
Mempho Fest literally can’t be explained without mentioning the show goers also. Such a laid back environment which we haven’t seen since we’d gone to Austin City Limits. If you’ve ever been to ACL this festival is very comparable except on a much smaller scale. The entire crowd we encountered was amazing. You truly felt like everyone in the crowd was a friend from the jump.
Within 15 minutes of being at the festival we knew we had to make this at least an every other year festival for us. From nearly any point past the entrance you can see the monitors of the stages and can enjoy the music being played at any point on the grounds. It can’t be stressed enough how small the grounds are also. From the entrance to the front of the mainstage (further points apart) could have been literally no more than a minute and a half walk.
Also, we love collecting posters and there was a poster available there which was one of the best we’d ever seen. Holtermonster was credited with the specific one we bought and it’s absolutely amazing.
Tyler Childers and the Food Stamps, everybody!
Parking Notes: Parking was free, parking was close, and parking was easy to get to. The only notable thing was leaving was somewhat of a drag. We got to our car around 10:30pm after hanging out after the show for a little bit. There was very little movement and we decided we’d just hangout in the car instead of dealing with the headache of being in a traffic line for a long time. No lie, within 20 minutes the entire parking lot was cleared out. It was as if the flood gates had been opened and allowed everyone to leave quickly.
Our advice is hangout inside the venue for a little bit and simply wait for the traffic directors to do their job and watch how quickly this mass of people is moved out of the lot.
Travel Notes: We were coming from Cincinnati for this one so we went down through Bowling Green and Nashville. We stopped to eat at the Back Home Restaurant in Elizabethtown, KY. A quaint little diner-esque restaurant that served “back home” cooking.
We sprung for the sweet onion dip which was one of the best apps we’d ever had before. For our main courses we opted for the country fried steak and meatloaf, along with a few sides. Honestly, the food was above average but wasn’t vastly over the top amazing save for the sweet onion dip. It was exactly what we’d expected from a small diner like restaurant but the price point seemed a little bit high on the food; all that being said to round it out by saying you must stop here if you’re in town and take it all in. This spot could have much worse food and still get our business.
You walk in and are in what seems to be a 200+ year old building (which we learned is a historical site actually), solid hardwood floors, homemade fudge for sale, weaving through different seating areas that all make you feel like you’re at your Grandma’s house, and then sitting down at a table with a twist of modern with multiple menus outline their main courses and their specials.
Truthfully in 2025 we’re well aware that the cost of food is through the roof and having worked in/around restaurants all our lives we realize that making high quality affordable food isn’t easily done. Our points about the food are not that the food was bad but rather for the price you could go to a different place and get a better deal. However, the atmosphere at Back Home Restaurant is worth paying for.
After leaving the restaurant we headed to Nashville where we had some time to blow so naturally we went to a local Goodwill where we found nothing we wanted but enjoyed a good look around. We followed the Goodwill stop by finding an arcade to go to: Game Terminal.
Game Terminal is located in south Nashville and this place was kick-ass! They have what appeared to be over 100 pinball machines and also over 100 stand up arcade games. Best part of that is your more classic games like Space Invaders and Frogger were free to play (as well as over 100 others). This place on the surface is a typical arcade, loud noises, flashing lights, kids and adults playing the same stand ups while trying to beat high scores, but let us tell you this place is FAR from typical.
Hidden deep inside this arcade are the best loaded cheese fries you’ll ever eat. Do yourself a favor and add the chicken to them. While the price tag is a hefty $16 or so for these you won’t regret the choice after eating them.
After being blessed by free games and amazing food we headed to Lipscomb University for a soccer game between the Lipscomb Bisons and Queens University. We try to catch a random sporting event when time allows just to spend some time relaxing but also enjoying live sports. Lipscomb’s campus is really nice and easily accessed. The soccer field is actual grass which is very unique at this point. The whole set up is awesome there. $11 is what we paid per ticket, which was all general admin. We chose to sit in some lesser desired seats to let those who were there to truly get into the game have better options.
The game itself was actually fairly boring which is no fault of the university or teams, just sometimes how games work. We enjoyed some snacks at the game, parked in the first parking spot, and met a really nice young man who took the time to speak with us about the game. All things considered for a 0-0 draw this was super fun and we’d love to go back at some point.