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<\/div>\n<\/div>\nEmily Ann Roberts on ‘deep pink’ outfit: ‘I bleed orange, OK?’<\/p>\n
Emily Ann Roberts assures the Knoxville crowd she’s a Tennessee Vols fan despite her crimson outfit during her Bijou Theater concert on Nov. 7, 2025.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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<\/story-highlights> Emily Ann Roberts\u2019 return to the Bijou Theatre wasn\u2019t just a homecoming, it was a heartwarming celebration of country music<\/a> and East Tennessee pride, with lots of stories and good fun in between.<\/p>\n Couples, families and friends of all ages packed the theater Nov. 7 for the first of two sold-out shows<\/a> headlined by the season 9 \u201cThe Voice\u201d runner-up.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have been looking forward to this since February and it just means the world to be back here at the Bijou,\u201d Roberts said after performing two songs.<\/p>\n The Knoxville native released her latest EP, \u201cMemory Lane,\u201d last month. It\u2019s her first release with her new Sony Music Nashville label. The hometown crowd was treated to performances of the new tunes, including “Jack & Jill Daniel’s,” a first listen of unreleased material and classic country songs that had everyone singing along.<\/p>\n If you\u2019ve ever seen Roberts onstage or on social media, you know she loves showing off her \u201cbam girl\u201d outfits. They\u2019re usually shimmering, dangling or flowing and often some shade of pink.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen it comes to colors and being girly, I think that it can really just become your personality. And it has become mine. And I own it,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Roberts opened night one in a deep purple dress with a matching fur jacket and purple boots that were paired with a sparkling choker, earrings and bracelet. But the true \u201cbam\u201d moment came when she removed the jacket mid-song to reveal two big purple flowers embellished on the dress.<\/p>\n \u201cMy husband, who is tragically an Alabama fan, would probably think that maybe this was leaning a little crimson. But I\u2019m here to tell you, I bleed orange, OK? Don\u2019t be confused,\u201d Roberts said. \u201cI just think that a deep pink like this is my color.\u201d<\/p>\n Roberts’ show unfolded almost like a musical love letter to her husband Chris Sasser, to country music and to Knoxville.<\/p>\n Between songs, she opened up about her relationship with Sasser. The two met in Spanish class at Karns High School, have been together 10 years and celebrated their fifth wedding anniversary on Nov. 6. A lot of her songs are about the special love they share \u2013 but it\u2019s not always \u201chowdy-doody, tutti-fruiti.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou have to learn when to pick your battles. \u2018Cause you don’t want to get in a knock down drag out in the front yard. You know what I’m saying? You don’t want to end up there.\u201d<\/p>\n Sasser is a \u201cgood fella,\u201d though. He spent their anniversary helping Roberts throw a crochet party. And during a recent chaotic period on the road, he offered to help his overwhelmed wife by washing her hair extensions \u2013 except he didn\u2019t rinse out the hair conditioner.<\/p>\n \u201cI’m standing there trying to get that brush through that hair and it won’t go. And I’m standing there and I’m thinking: Pick your battles. You did, in fact, ask a bald-headed man to wash your hair,\u201d Roberts recalled.<\/p>\n A standout moment of the night was a powerhouse medley honoring women of country music. She belted \u201cYou Ain\u2019t Woman Enough\u201d (Loretta Lynn), \u201cWhy\u2019d You Come in Here Lookin\u2019 Like That\u201d (Dolly Parton), \u201cFancy\u201d (Bobbie Gentry), \u201cThis One\u2019s for the Girls\u201d (Martina McBride), \u201cAny Man of Mine\u201d (Shania Twain), \u201cBefore He Cheats\u201d (Carrie Underwood) and \u201cGunpowder & Lead\u201d (Miranda Lambert).<\/p>\n Throughout the tribute, the crowd sang along, and some were roused out of their seats to dance.<\/p>\n On stage, Roberts acknowledged the women who paved the way for her, but seated in the audience were the ones who will come after. During \u201cPretty in Pink,\u201d Roberts spotted a group of young girls wearing cowgirl hats.<\/p>\n \u201cCome closer so I can see you,\u201d she said to them. The girls rushed to the stage while Roberts kneeled and sang to them. It was a touching and genuine moment.<\/p>\n Roberts made sure her hometown got a show like no other. She performed an unreleased song, \u201cCome Home to You,\u201d and closed the show with \u201cSee You Down the Road,\u201d a song she specifically wrote while thinking about performing in Knoxville.<\/p>\n She also debuted a heartfelt ballad that hasn\u2019t even been recorded yet, called \u201cThings You Didn\u2019t Know.\u201d She dedicated the song to her dad, who was in the audience, along with other family members. He suffered a back injury at 21 and was told he\u2019d never walk again. But through faith, determination and rehabilitation, he learned to walk with braces and has lived a full life.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s been such an encouragement to me and my biggest fan,\u201d Roberts said. \u201cHe was the first one to show me three cords on the guitar and, really, he introduced me to the style of music that I think shaped who I am as an artist today.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMama had a little part in it,\u201d Roberts added. \u201cMama was very straightlaced. She liked Gaither, you know?\u201d she said, referencing the southern gospel vocal group.<\/p>\n Other songs Roberts performed during the concert included \u201cMemory Lane,\u201d \u201cEasy Does It,\u201d \u201cThe Fence,\u201d \u201cBus to Augusta,\u201d \u201cWhole Lotta Little,\u201d \u201cBack Home,\u201d \u201cSixteen Tons,\u201d \u201cThe Building\u201d and \u201c9 to 5.\u201d<\/p>\n Before closing the nearly two-hour show, Roberts brought out her opening act, Carson Peters, for a fiddle-filled performance of \u201cRocky Top.\u201d Peters is also from East Tennessee and a former \u201cVoice\u201d contestant. Roberts first saw him perform at the Bijou when he was around 10 years old.<\/p>\n \u201cI feel like there’s a big old crop of young’uns coming up right now that are just country as cornbread. And it makes me so happy to be a part of it,\u201d Roberts said.<\/p>\n Roberts has always kept her hometown part of her music journey. Her sold-out Nov. 7 and Nov. 8 shows come after hosting her album release show at the Bijou in 2023. She played Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center earlier this year as part of Blake Shelton\u2019s \u201cFriends and Heroes\u201d<\/a> tour. And she recently had a performing stint at Dollywood.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m so proud to be an East Tennessee girl,\u201d she told the Nov. 7 crowd. \u201cI say to y’all all the time \u2018I love you, I love you\u2019 and I mean it. \u2026 I mean it from the bottom of the heart. Thank you for letting me and allowing me to do what I love.\u201d<\/p>\n Devarrick Turner is a trending news reporter. Email\u00a0devarrick.turner@knoxnews.com<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n\n
What was the ‘bam girl’ outfit for night one<\/h2>\n
It\u2019s a love story<\/h2>\n
From Loretta and Dolly to Carrie and Miranda<\/h2>\n
Pretty in pink<\/h2>\n
Special songs just for Knoxville<\/h2>\n
All roads lead back to the Bijou<\/h2>\n