Drizzly New Jersey greeted us at the famous Starland Ballroom. For most, rain is a foreboding sign of despair, but huddled under the awning by the fans who call themselves Huddy Gang, I had the sinking feeling this rain represented a new beginning.
via Ali Fitzgerald, @alfitzpics
For Chase Hudson, he had a lot to prove on this tour. He began his rise to fame on TikTok where he was a founder of the viral collective the Hype House. After grappling with who he wanted to be, he decided it was time to embrace his passion — music. Under his stage name “HUDDY” (previously known as Lil Huddy) he released the first taste of his sound and genuinely shocked both his fanbase and the general public. Huddy was reaching for a pop punk sound that was just starting to come back into popularity.
Career transitions are never easy. If Chase wanted to make it, he’d need to be able to prove that he wasn’t the e-boy TikToker that everyone knew him as. If he wanted to be considered a serious musician, he’d need to deliver unforgettable performances every night on tour.
Was he ready to live up to his new beginning?
On tour with Oliver Tree’s “Cowboy Tears: One Last Ride” tour meant he finally would get to share his music with a live audience. If we’re candid, he was the odd man out on the tour lineup, which typically would be an issue. His pop-rock sound with an early 2000s mainstream punk influence truly felt out of place on the bill.
Nonetheless, he proved my anxieties about that wrong. He wasn’t the odd man; Huddy was the stand-out star.
The front of the crowd was lined with his dedicated fangirls pressed eagerly against the barricade. It was clear from the moment he took the stage that these were his ride-or-dies and he was living for their energy. It didn’t take long into the performance for him to show clearly his own adoration for his supporters. He had that immediate on-stage presence and interactive energy that foreshadowed the tone for the whole set.
He could have stopped there, engaged his audience, and finished his songs. However, with something to prove, he wonderfully roped in the rest of the crowd. It was impossible not to be entranced by his performance once it began. Huddy’s high energy was intoxicating.
via Ali Fitzgerald, @alfitzpics
Plus, who doesn’t like that classic pop-punk sound?
It gave us the nostalgia of Blink-182 and All Time Low with a modern Gen Z twist of 5 Seconds of Summer. Don’t go into a Huddy show expecting a midwest American Football sound or a Philadelphia’s The Wonder Years. Instead, with a clear mind and a hopeful encouragement for the next generation of pop punk, you’ll be able to walk away with something wonderful.
Huddy isn’t a band, though, unlike those acts. He’s a solo artist and one with no prior music industry experience. As such, he must rely on the guidance of those around him. Huddy came on stage with an incredibly talented full backing band, leaning into the rockstar energy that he was exuding, but ultimately this is still his music and his performance alone.
Much like Avril Lavigne, being a solo act in this genre truly is rare and can either cause a shining star to prosper or burnout. After all, band members aren’t coping with the pressure of being the sole center of attention on that stage. They work as a unit. In order to live up to the expectations of mainstream pop punk before him, he’d need to fill that stage with enough energy for five people.
He succeeded.
For an artist with little prior performance experience, he knew how to make that stage his own. Not to bring up Huddy’s past as Lil Huddy, but maybe TikTok entertainment, performing to a screen, isn’t much different than musically engaging fans live.
Here’s the thing: Chase isn’t the first TikTok artist to reach for a musical career. Social media stars like Dixie and Addison Rae have also made an attempt. In the past, this strategy has worked with pop star Shawn Mendes having risen out of the depths of the now defunct Vine. That being said, breaking into pop punk isn’t quite as easy.
Oftentimes, this scene can gatekeep this genre in hopes of staying on their high horse. You’d be foolish to reject Huddy who is reviving this sound and will be keeping our scene alive. It would be impossible to catch a Huddy set and not see the obvious passion bubbling from him and the talent that makes him a standout showstopper.
Love it or hate it: Huddy is the future.
You can catch him for yourself at When We Were Young Fest in Las Vegas this October.
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Photos via Ali Fitzgerald
BTW: We’re loving his latest single, but you won’t believe the drama it caused.
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