Country star Eric Church has hit back at criticism he received for his unconventional performance at the Stagecoach Music Festival, which divided the audience.

The singer took to the Festival stage by turning Stagecoach in Indio, California into a church, with stained glass art projections behind him and a gospel choir to accompany him.

Although his concert started later than scheduled, he opened with a five-minute church organ intro followed by a cover of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah.”

The singer performed many covers, some traditional and some quite unexpected.

Among others he performed his own version of Tupac Shakur’s “California Love” and Snoop Dogg’s “Gin and Juice” and did not focus on his own hits.

Social media and newspaper reports such as the Desert Sun report that there was a “mass exodus” of the public.

Others, especially die-hard Eric Church fans – felt he preserved his reputation as a “rebel” by doing something unexpected.

The singer responded to the reactions by emphasizing:It was the hardest gig I’ve ever tried».

He also stated that he wanted to return to the music loved by artists such as Bruce Springsteen and Willie Nelson. “The origin of all this is still the purest form of music.

It felt good to get a choir and do that,” he explained.

The Desert Sun reported that Church “sent Festival goers to the exit…” and likened the spectacle “to Moses parting the Red Sea.”

“He hasn’t gotten off the stool and most of the songs are covers with the choir. That’s not what we came forwrote one viewer on Twitter, asking Stagecoach to refund the expensive ticket price.