Watch Morgan Evans Help New Jersey Couple Get Engaged to ‘Dance With Me’ Live On Stage
Morgan Evans recently gave a couple in New Jersey the proposal story of a lifetime.
The Stone Pony in Asbury Park, N.J., is one of the most historic venues in the United States, and has always been known for the magic it brings to the music performed there. Evans took his Globe-Trotting World Tour to the iconic venue on Dec. 5, where his song, “Dance With Me,” served as the musical soundtrack to a proposal for a young couple in the audience.
Mark Melendez and Courtney Moed’s love story all began a little over ten years ago, when they met while working at a local supermarket. Their joint love for country music began on March 7, 2019, in New York City, when Moed brought Melendez to a Dan + Shay concert at the Hammerstein Ballroom. Evans was the opening act that night.
“I’ll be honest, I’ve never been the biggest country music fan, but when I saw Morgan’s set I had such an incredible time,” Melendez tells Taste of Country. “His honest demeanor, great attitude and raw personality is what I really appreciated about his performance.”
Melendez began planning for the perfect on-stage proposal as soon as Evans announced his headlining tour. Melendez received Moed’s father’s blessing less than three weeks before the show, and took a chance by sending the country star a direct message on Instagram with his request of proposing to Moed at Evans' upcoming concert. Evans agreed to work it out with Melendez to give his girlfriend the surprise of a lifetime.
Flash forward to Thursday, Dec. 5, 2019, when Melendez and Moed attended the Jersey Shore stop of Evans' tour as country fans and left together as an engaged couple.
Evans was about halfway through his set when he started to perform "Dance With Me." The track is from his 2018 debut album, Things That We Drink To, and features his wife, Kelsea Ballerini.
"I don't usually do this, certainly not in the middle of a song. But, there's a fella here in the audience tonight named Mark and I want to invite him up on stage right now," Evans announced to the crowd.
Evans gave the spotlight to both Melendez and Moed to share what would be the start of the rest of their lives center stage at the Stone Pony. The crowd was filled with emotions as he got down on one knee, and Evans went on to perform the rest of the romantic tune.
"I'm forever grateful to Morgan and his crew for allowing me to propose in the middle of his, and our, favorite song," Melendez tells us. "I’m thankful to Courtney for making me feel like the luckiest person in the world, I’m very thankful to her family for supporting me with my plans, and I’m thankful to everyone who was there to live the moment with us."
Evans will wrap up his tour in Columbus, Ohio, on Dec. 14, before he joins Old Dominion in Hawaii for his first show of 2020 on Jan. 3. The singer-songwriter is fresh off the release of his brand new single, "Diamonds." He was recently announced as part of the lineup for the CRS 2020 New Faces of Country Music show, alongside Ingrid Andress, Riley Green, Runaway June and Mitchell Tenpenny.
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