I’ve, unfortunately, always been a major skeptic (but not necessarily a critic) of YUNGBLUD and for no particular quantifiable reason. I could appreciate his climb and rise in popularity. In fact, when one of his songs would pop on I’d give it a listen and move about my day. I always told myself that maybe what was missing was that I needed to see him live. For some artists, their live performance is what captures me enough to reel me in as a lifelong fan. It’s all about the energy, connection, and that x-factor that I will never quite be able to define.
Then came 2020, the year that every concert lover felt a large part of their soul die.
Something would have to take over that void in the entertainment industry and it wasn’t long before we saw live streams popping up everywhere. And who was to be among the artists hopping on this trend? YUNGBLUD.
He titled the tour “Weird Time of Life”, which was possibly the most accurate title that could have been chosen. So, while I didn’t know exactly what to expect when I logged onto the live stream on November 30th for the “New York City” show, I knew it wouldn’t be like anything I had experienced before.
This wasn’t my first of the COVID make-shift concerts. I’d tuned in to live streams for artists like Niall Horan and Liam Payne. Plus, I’d been keeping my eye on Instagram for other semblances of live music. I’d even tried the in-person drive in concerts to see The Front Bottoms.
YUNGBLUD’s show was different, though. In many ways, it felt significantly more genuine than what I had seen before it. You could tell from the way he paced his music and poured his entirety into the performance that this was everything to him. He was doing this for his fans before himself. He proclaimed loudly to his digital audience: “I LOVE YOU SO MUCH PLEASE NEVER FORGET THAT”, which is something so easy to forget right now when we all feel a million miles apart.
Up until now, every live stream has felt as if it was more for the artist, to give them an opportunity to perform, rather than for the fans who are so desperate to feel live music again. This isn’t to criticize other live streams: trying to flip that feeling is an incredibly difficult feat in the era we are living in. However, YUNGBLUD and his team went out of their way to make it feel like it was fan-oriented and authentic. From limiting show capacities to give a more intimate feeling to mimicking traveling by giving each city it’s own night – YUNGBLUD really did all he could to emulate that feeling of touring.
After logging on, it was clear that the production wasn’t meant to feel like being in a music video or have any sort of heightened, unrealistic quality. It was meant to truly feel like a concert experience down to the details. In fact, even the way the stage lights danced across YUNGBLUD’s face reminded me of those moments at a show when everything is hazy and unclear, but everything feels okay. While I couldn’t turn and look at the crowd around me, taking in their physical energy, I was able to watch the chat fill with fans that YUNGBLUD’s music had touched.
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That’s the thing about YUNGBLUD. His fans aren’t just passively consuming his content. He’s the sort of artist that you’re either all in for or not listening to at all. If you are all in, though, you know there’s something special about his message and story. It’s the way he wants fans to believe in themselves and believe in each other. It’s the way he inspires them to take action, but also inspires them to find themselves and pour their passion into what makes them happy.
During the show YUNGBLUD was taken back by his own connection with his fans, reminiscing on one he had met and dedicating a song to them: “I wrote this song about one of you. After a show in Maryland, one of you told me a story I will never forget”.
While this show was through a screen, it felt like YUNGBLUD had taken off a mask when performing live. His confidence on stage was abundantly clear. It was obvious that in this element he was his true, authentic self. He effortlessly commanded his digital and invisible audience. He stirred up emotions and calmed anxieties at the same time. He gave his all to this performance and ultimately to his fans…. and in COVID times that’s more than we can really ask for.
Perhaps one of the best parts of this whole ordeal was getting to hear some new music live. YUNGBLUD will be dropping his new album Weird! on December 4th (same night as the Atlanta virtual show) and it couldn’t be more highly anticipated by fans.
The show start to finish was only an hour (including openers), but it was an hour that I could disconnect from the stream of negativity in the world and just be. Me, myself, my laptop, and YUNGBLUD’s voice… oh, and all the incredible fans in the chatbox who kept the feeling of connection alive.
Connected, yet alone: I guess, that’s the mantra for 2020.
Weird Time of Life Tour New York City was a unique and beautiful experience, but I cannot wait until we can get back to real tours, real people, and, hopefully, I’ll find myself in the pit of a YUNGBLUD show, screaming along to lyrics with the other fans and knowing now that he has that on-stage x-factor, that live confidence, that some artists just embody and radiate.
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