Orville Peck Dedicates Performance to ‘All the Gay Cowboys’: ‘We Exist, We Walk Among You’

Orville Peck made his headlining debut at the Hollywood Bowl on Friday night. But it wasn’t the first time the country singer performed at the legendary amphitheater.

He performed at the outdoor venue during Willie Nelson’s 90th birthday celebration in 2023.

About a year later, Peck, who is openly gay, and Nelson duetted on a cover of “Cowboys Are Frequently Secretly Fond of Each Other,” Latin country musician Ned Sublette’s 1981 song about same-sex love and lust among the boots and saddles set. The Nelson collaboration is featured on Peck’s 2024 duets album “Stampede.”

“It’s a song that’s very pertinent to my interests,” Peck said, inspiring cheers and applause from the audience. “It’s about gay cowboys. I don’t know if you notice, but I’m a gay cowboy.”

He continued, “We exist. We walk among you. There’s probably some here. I think I see a bunch.”

Raising an arm into the air, Peck said, “Let’s dedicate this one to the incredible, incredible Mr. Willie Nelson. I’m sure he’s enjoying an edible somewhere.”

Before launching into the song, Peck said, “This is for all the gay cowboys.”

The song includes Nelson crooning, “And I believe to my soul that inside every man there’s the feminine/And inside every lady there’s a deep manly voice loud and clear/And a cowboy may brag about things that he’s done with his women/But the ones who brag loudest are the ones that are most likely queer.”

The two sing together, “Cowboys are frequently secretly fond of each other/What do you think all them saddles and boots was about?/And there’s many a cowboy who don’t understand the way that he feels for his brother/And inside every cowboy there’s a lady that’d love to slip out.”

A music video for the track was filmed on Nelson’s Luke Ranch in Spicewood, Texas.

The concert also included a surprise appearance by Noah Cyrus, who joined Peck on stage to duet on “Atchafalaya.” A music video for Peck and Cyrus’ “How Far Will We Take It?” featured a pre-“Heated Rivalry” François Arnaud in a love-triangle storyline.

During his encore, Peck covered Dolly Parton’s “I Will Always Love You.” Opening acts included Lucius and Deloyd Elze.

Friday also marked the release of Peck’s fourth studio album, “Mule.” The album chronicles his battle with addiction before getting sober in 2023.

“These are very deep wounds,” Peck told me during an interview on Wednesday. “What better therapy is there than getting up and being able to express these songs? Then there are people listening and relating, and they’re sharing their pain. It’s a spiritual experience.”

In the song, “Ring the Bell,” Peck sings of kissing an unidentified pro football “Raiders player.”

“I did receive permission to sing that lyric from the subject in question, and he was very thrilled,” Peck said. “I told him, ‘Look, I’m gonna keep it sort of ambiguous and mysterious, but I would like to include this in this song.’ He was very, very honored.”

He added, “I would never have done it if it were somebody who was hiding or fearful of it coming out. This person would have probably allowed me to say their name if I wanted, but I didn’t think it was necessary. People can use their own common sense and discovery to try to figure out who it may be, but that’s all I’ll say.”