This might be the strangest headline I’ve ever written. In case you missed it, over the weekend, Zac Brown Band played their two shows at their sold-out Love & Fear residency at the Las Vegas Sphere. And while the show itself was quite the spectacle, fully utilizing the Sphere’s status as being a technical marvel, it proved to be one of, if not, the most controversial country concerts of 2025. From the get-go, it’s been clear that the Zac Brown Band’s Sphere shows are among the biggest things the group has ever done. But Brown never backed down from the challenge that comes with performing there, and when the band announced their residency, they called it a “dream come true,” saying the only thing he was worried about was bringing a unique experience to their fanbase: “Bringing our new album ‘Love & Fear’ to Sphere Las Vegas is a dream come true. It’s my masterpiece so far. This show is the story of my life that I have never shared, a journey through my imagination, music, and stories that have defined who I am. All of this brought to life in the incredible immersive environment of Sphere. It will be a unique experience where you can really feel every note, every word, right there with us. We can’t wait to share it with the fans.” View this post on Instagram And they certainly went all out, performing a plethora of brand-new tracks from their new album of the same name and certified classics such as “Chicken Fried,” “Toes,” “Colder Weather” and “Knee Deep.” As someone who was introduced to country music through the band at a young age (I know, I’m seriously showing my age here), I thought it was about as good of an experience you were going to get from the once-great group at The Sphere. There’s no denying that Zac Brown and Co. have taken a steep dive over the years, plagued by controversies with the frontman himself, their incessant need to dive into other genres highlighted by their disastrous 2019 album, The Owl, and Brown’s side project, Sir Roosevelt, his God-awful solo album,  The Controversy, and their general lack of identity over the past decade. With all of that being said, the first round of Sphere shows seemed like it would be a major hit among hardcore fans of ZBB, so what’s with all the controversy? Well, it all has to do with the set’s opener and subsequent first track. The opening of the concert featured what appeared to be a descent into Hell, with Brown taking the stage flanked by images of the devil and wearing a crown that resembled devil horns while performing “Heavy Is The Head,” the stellar metal track featuring the late, great Chris Cornell from their 2015 genre-fluid album, Jekyll & Hyde. @infiniti_salon Opening night, opening song! #spherelasvegas #zacbrownband #vegas ♬ original sound – Courtney @vegas Night one of @Zac Brown Band at @Sphere ♬ original sound – Las Vegas Given the fact that Brown dared to use some dark and demonic imagery, complete with the aforementioned depiction of Hell and demons on screen, this led to seemingly hundreds upon thousands of people, both in attendance and online, to accuse the 3x Grammy winner of not only worshipping the Devil but also performing a “satanic” ritual at the concert. I really wish I was joking about this, but you can read some of the best (and most absurd) reactions here. Of course, if you have even an ounce of media literacy within you, you’d be keen to the fact that the song ends with a visual of what appears to be St. Michael the Archangel defeating Satan, thus pulling the audience and the band themselves back out of Hell before immediately transitioning into one of their lighter, country tunes, the 2015 #1 hit, “Homegrown.” God forbid an artist take some risks (if you can even call it a risk) and use some incredibly standard depictions of Hell, am I right? And Zac has used skeletons in their media for a long time… their 2012 Uncaged album has one on the cover, Brandon Maldonado’s 2009 Our Lady of Merciful Fate. This still didn’t stop people online from divulging into what I can only describe as some 1980s-level “Satanic Panic,” complete with paranoid think-pieces on social media and the like. And if you don’t believe me, simply search “Zac Brown Demonic” on TikTok and get a taste for the parnoia yourself. Things have gotten so ridiculous that the actual Church of Satan had to step in and clear the air. Again, I wish I was joking…. In a recent interview with TMZ, a Satanic Reverend (apparently that’s a real thing) by the name of Jared Mammon confirmed, in fact, that the Zac Brown Band concert was not a Satanic ritual. In the same interview, he’d argue that the virality of the band’s concert reflects a decades-long hysteria that has been brewing since the tapering off of the aforementioned “Satanic Panic” in the 80s. After correctly stating that ZBB is being attacked for no reason (on the basis of the “Satanism” at least), he’d end by reflecting on just how ridiculous it is that people are being scared of a safe depiction of Hell, a skeleton and a couple of demons. “Those who are frightened by a theatrical skeleton wearing crowns to pause for a moment to reflect on their knee-jerk reaction and consider the implications before jumping to lengths worthy of an Olympic Gold medal.” I certainly didn’t have agreeing with anything coming from the Church of Satan on my 2025 bingo card, but here we are. If anything this simply proves just how utterly insane of a timeline we are currently.The post The Church Of Satan (Of All Places) Confirms Zac Brown Band’s Vegas Sphere Shows Were, In Fact, Not A Satanic Ritual first appeared on Whiskey Riff.