I have been an avid Conan Gray fan since 2021 and have been vying for tickets to one of his shows since his sophomore album, Superache, came out in the summer of 2022. Conan hasn’t been to Denver since his Kid Krow tour in 2022, as it got delayed due to Covid. Shortly after, he announced his world tour for Superache where he did not have Colorado on his list of tour dates. His most recent tour, Found Heaven, also didn’t come to Colorado, but I traveled to Phoenix just to witness this incredible experience.
Conan Gray originally started as a YouTuber, where he would make cooking videos, vlogs, and sing covers of popular songs. When he was a senior in high school, he released his first ever song called “Grow”, and soon after that, he released his first EP Sunset Season. Gray didn’t get popular until he released his first album Kid Krow in 2020. As this was right at the start of the pandemic, Gray didn’t get to go on tour, but he did gain some popularity after a few of his songs went viral on TikTok such as “Heather” and “Maniac.” In 2022, Gray released his Sophomore album, Superache, which gained him a ton of popularity as more of those songs went viral on TikTok. Just this year Gray released his new album, Found Heaven, which is his least popular album to date. I believe this is due to a sudden genre switch that caught fans off guard. Gray is known to write sad romance songs with an occasional upbeat tune on the album. Found Heaven is almost all upbeat tunes with an 80s twist, and a few of his classic ballads thrown in. This switch in genres did not deter me from loving his music or going to see his tour.
After Gray’s amazing opener Maisie Peters finishes playing, there is a small intermission between shows, and during this time a large curtain with the Found Heaven symbol is raised. The iconic opening song begins, and as soon as the music starts, the curtain drops. From that moment I knew that his stage presence was going to be incredible. While during his songs it may sound like I’m singing death metal instead of pop, I truly was having the time of my life. Gray is an incredibly interactive singer and enjoys both speaking to his fans and describing his journey on writing songs. One of the most notable songs he sang is “The Story”, which he’s been performing since Kid Krow came out. “The Story” is a heartfelt song about how life isn’t easy, specifically referring to his childhood. However, this song is about how the story doesn’t end even when something bad happens— there’s always a way to move on and find your own happiness. This song stuck out to me because he tells a whole story before he plays and he lets the audience sing a lot of the song. I thought it was very sweet to hear everybody around me sing a song with such a positive message, and it made me feel like everyone there had something in common— even for a split second.
Gray’s tour set seems simple at first sight: a big star that lights up with other lights around. However, outside of Olivia Rodrigo, it’s one of the coolest sets I’ve had the pleasure of seeing. Every song had its own color and all the neon felt straight out of the 80s. My personal favorite songs with the set were “Boys & Girls”, “Lonely Dancers”, and of course, “Maniac”. All of these songs were high-energy, and even though there was dried beer on the floor trying to pull my shoes off, it didn’t stop me from dancing to each one. “Boys & Girls” does an incredible job of putting someone in the common position of pining over somebody hot who everybody wants, while they couldn’t care less about you. The “Lonely Dancers” looked like it came straight out of the music video with its vibrant atmosphere, which brought me back to how I felt when I first heard the song back in March. The neon orange and blue colors were the perfect choice for the song. Finally, “Maniac” was more of a laser light show than any of the other songs. “Maniac” was one of Gray’s first popular songs, and the volume of the audience and effort in the performance and set made it obvious. Gray showed amazing breath support during this song, as he was often skipping back and forth on the stage during the performance and dancing across the stage“Maniac” remains my most listened to song on Spotify after listening to it 271 times in 2021, when I heard it on TikTok for the first time.
As the concert came to a close, I knew immediately I was going to have major post-concert depression— and I was right. I’ve already rewatched my own Instagram posts several times. But, before it was over, he played three of his most iconic songs. His first encore song was “Bourgeoisieses”, one of the most popular on his newest album. Gray always wears a different shirt during this song, and my venue had the honor of getting the Fortnite Jesus shirt, a reference to his desire to have his own playable character in Fortnite. The intro to this song was about as dramatic as I was expecting, with white lights flashing as he rose from the platform in the center of the stage. I could tell this is probably the song he loves performing the most with how much effort he put into it as an encore. The second encore song was “Maniac” which I already mentioned. I have been in very few venues as loud as the one I was in during Maniac. He closed his concert out with “Alley Rose”, a song I still vividly remember hearing for the first time, and it was just as good as I had imagined it to be. Near the end of “Alley Rose”, three cannons at the front of the stage blasted confetti in the shape of his album symbol in colors red, blue, and yellow— which have been the staple look of the album.
I wanted to mention some honorable mentions during the performance, like “Memories”, my favorite song on the album Superache, and after two years of screaming the lyrics in my car, seeing it live was one of the best experiences I could have had. Another is “Holidays”, which is Gray’s most recent song that came out about two weeks ago. During this song, the power went out and the whole band left the stage for a few minutes, but he handled it like a pro and played the song again. His opening song, “Fainted Love”, which is one of my favorite songs on the album, set the stage for the vibe of the concert. I do not remember this song as well as the others because I think I was in shock. My last honorable mention is “Wish You Were Sober”, another one of Gray’s most popular songs. I enjoyed this immensely simply because he played the chorus before jumping into the beginning of the song, and one of my favorite things music artists do is change up the order of the song when they perform it versus on the record. Seeing Conan Gray has truly been the highlight of my year, and I could not have gone without my mom being the best mom in the whole world. This concert was my graduation present, and I am so grateful that I got to experience something so amazing with my favorite person in the world. I am not exaggerating when I say: I truly found heaven on tour.
