YUNGBLUD Life on Mars Tour Review: Nashville, TN
Words: Kelsey Christine
One of Doncaster’s finest, Yungblud, (don’t @ me Louies, I said ‘one of’) kicked off his North American ‘Life on Mars’ tour this past week in Athens, Georgia. The third stop on this tour was in Nashville, Tennessee, and I had the pleasure of securing a ticket for myself the day that they went on sale. He’s currently touring with Canadian-American rock band Palaye Royale, as well as a variety of three different additional openers slotted for certain locations.
I must admit, I don’t typically consider myself a huge Yungblud fan. I like him, his music, and what he stands for, but I can barely sing along with the lyrics of more than probably 3-4 songs. The real pull for me seeing him in Nashville was: 1) The Ryman Auditorium and 2) Charlotte Sands opening the show.
The Ryman Auditorium is one of the most iconic historic venues in America. For those of you who aren’t familiar, here’s a super abridged history of the Ryman: it was constructed in the late 1800s as a church, later transformed into a venue that housed the famous ‘Grand Ole Opry’ for over 30 years, and has since been officially designated as a National Historic Landmark.
Music’s biggest names in every genre have performed on that stage, from Elvis to Aretha Franklin to yes, even Harry Styles. You can feel the history in this place, and seeing a show there is unlike any other due to the meaningful and intimate atmosphere it creates. If you ever get the chance to visit Nashville, I highly recommend taking a tour of the Ryman Auditorium. The first time I did so, I was moved to tears.
Nonetheless, it’s very easy to convince myself to get tickets for a show at the Ryman, even if I don’t know the performer super well.
Now onto reason #2, Charlotte Sands. Also a Nashville local, this pop-punk influenced singer/songwriter originally captured my heart with her song Dress, which started to go viral after the iconic Harry Styles Vogue cover. Following the recent release of her latest EP, Love and Other Lies, I was truly stoked to see her perform live.
Charlotte was first to take the stage in her signature oversized race car tee and bright blue ponytails, jumping around with a smile so big that I could see it clearly from my floor seats back in row Y. Her positive energy was contagious and her voice sounded phenomenal. Seriously, the girl’s got pipes. It was surprising to see her backed by only a drummer, rather than a full band, but the drummer’s enthusiasm definitely helped make up for any lack of fellow band members. As an already biased Charlotte Sands fan, I was pleased with her set to say the least.
Next was Palaye Royale, a band I had never heard of prior and was therefore clueless about what to expect. The first word that comes to mind when describing this band is…interesting. In quite a shocking contrast from Charlotte and her drummer, Palaye Royale took the stage with (I think) six band members in total. The most alluring thing about this group right off the bat was that each member was seemingly dressed to represent a different era in music. Their movement and energy onstage was chaotic, but like, the good kind of chaotic. There was certainly a LOT to look at, almost over-stimulating at times, but I gotta say, they definitely made an impression on me. Perhaps the best part of Palaye Royale’s set was when they covered Teenagers by My Chemical Romance, an unexpected way to win over the heart of this elder emo kid.
Alright, Yungblud fans, here’s the part you all came here for. The anticipation for our headliner to take the stage was INTENSE. The crew dropped a curtain on stage and took at least double the amount of time that it took to set up for both openers—we could tell that this set, especially on the small stage of the Ryman Auditorium, was going to be pretty epic.
*Spoilers ahead!
Finally, we were greeted with a lowering of the lights, a projected image of a mouth moving it’s lips against the black curtain that still hung, welcoming us with a recording from Yungblud himself. Before starting the show, he asked us four important questions:
- Are you ready to scream louder than you ever have before?!
- Are you ready to go so fucking mad they’ll lock you up and throw away the key?!
- Are you ready to jump until we crack this fucking floor below us?!
- And most importantly…are you ready to celebrate love and unity with every single ounce of your being?!
A spotlight then shone on the curtain, exposing his distinctive silhouette and eliciting a cacophony of cheers and screeches from the eager audience in anticipation of finally revealing our star in the flesh. Before kicking things off with Strawberry Lipstick, Yungblud spent some time just strutting around in his shiny leather pants and mesh top, periodically pausing to pose for applause. This man DEMANDS attention on stage—it was truly captivating.
If I’m being completely honest, I was a little disappointed to notice that the first handful of songs were barely being sung live because he would so frequently hold the mic out to the audience to sing along. Sure, this creates an exciting communal moment at any show, but he was doing it so often that I found myself craving to hear more of his voice through the mic rather than ours. I recognize that his high-energy stage presence is a huge part of the draw to see a Yungblud show live, but I wondered how much of the vocals were worth sacrificing for the exertion it takes to jump and run across stage for hours on end. (Not to mention, spewing water all over the crowd multiple times, an extremely amusing sight that I’m willing to bet is not currently approved by the CDC. Gotta love it. 😂)
Much to my delight, this seemed to transition about maybe half way through the show and we started to hear a lot more of his voice. As expected, his thick accent and gritty belts sounded fantastic bouncing off the historic walls, wooden pews, and stained glass windows. I love when an artist’s true talent is recognized by the way they sound live, and Yungblud’s performances sounded much like his studio recordings, signaling that the talent we hear through our headphones is real. What’s more engaging than listening to a studio recording of a song though, is experiencing it live alongside a healthy dose of audience interaction, which I quickly learned was a strength of Yungblud’s. That intro to the show was only one of many times that he’d pause to ask us questions, or encourage us to scream our heads off, or my favorite—getting the entire crowd to sit down and then all jump up at the same time.
At one point, he brought a young girl on stage to play guitar for Fleabag—apparently she was holding a sign that asked him to do so. Part of me is skeptical that this wasn’t a set up because she did so amazingly well (even seeming to know stage direction) but either way, it was a really endearing moment and she kicked ass. It looked like she was having a blast and it made me think she should be a part of his official band now. 😉
Finally, one of the coolest and probably most unexpected parts of Yungblud’s Nashville show was when he did a cover of Johnny Cash’s Folsom Prison Blues, specifically performed for the sake of honoring the history of the Ryman. I was blown away by this performance, as it was one of those instances where he made the cover his own but didn’t completely change the nature of the song, and in my opinion, he nailed it.
I could honestly write nearly ten more paragraphs about my experience that night, but I’ll wrap with this—my favorite part about this entire show was the overall message being shared by all performing acts. I specifically recall both Charlotte and Yungblud pausing to make speeches before certain songs, sharing the message that we can each be whoever we want to be, look however we want to look, and love whoever we want to love. Acknowledging that we’re free to do those things and that we’re in a safe space to do so is what makes concerts so special in the first place, right?
Being surrounded by people who are technically strangers, but for those few hours, become your family—that’s fookin’ priceless.
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