Music is something that we all love. We love specific songs, specific music styles, artists, and more. I am the kind of person that falls in love with an artist and gets totally stuck on their music, listening to everything they’ve ever created on a loop. Because I find myself wanting to listen to everything that I can possibly find by those artists, I tend to find lesser-known versions of their songs. They are often live recordings of them, that may be singles or songs that aren’t well-known, and listening to an artist live is one of the best experiences there is. It allows you to hear their true skills and the emotions that they sing with, as well as anything else they add into those songs that they don’t do in the recorded version. Here are some of my favorite live versions of songs from some of my favorite artists!
- Bad Reputation – Shawn Mendes
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From his MTV Unplugged live album, Bad Reputation is a song that blows me away every time I listen to it (and I’ve listened to it a lot). Mendes adds an element of intensity to the song by making it more raw and emotional while he sings, and it features a cello throughout the song along with two violins that I simply can’t stop being obsessed with. This song also shows off the pure talent that Shawn has by allowing him to let loose with his voice and hit some notes that I hadn’t heard from him before. Listen/watch it here!
- Give Me Love – Ed Sheeran
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I’ve said it before in articles, and I’m sure I’ll say it again after this one. Ed Sheeran’s Give Me Love ranks pretty high on my list of all-time favorite songs, and might even hold the top spot. It’s a stunningly beautiful song in which Ed is brutally honest about his emotions, and the musical elements mixed with Ed’s emotional voice and lyrics create a song that has a level of intensity I haven’t heard before. He sang this song in the Live Room, and if you’ve ever heard Ed sing live before, then you’ll know that he likes to add things into songs and extend them like crazy. He makes this already intense song even more strong and powerful, and manages to build up the intensity with just a guitar, a loop pedal, and himself. Fall in love with it here!
- This is Gospel – Panic! At the Disco
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The recorded version of This is Gospel is slightly techno and is definitely interesting, but when Brendan Urie sings this live, it’s just him and his piano. In the live album ‘All My Friends, We’re Glorious: Death of a Bachelor Tour Live,’ This is Gospel is featured and is truly stunning. The emotion in Urie’s voice hits me right in the feels every time (as does his high notes and gorgeous voice in general, of course). Find it here.
- Take Me to Church – Hozier
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If you don’t know this song, then you might be living under a rock (sorry, not sorry). It’s a gorgeous song with powerful words that allowed Hozier to make an impact on society and allowed us to hear his beautiful, deep voice. In this live performance, Hozier is singing in Paris and is stunned when the audience sings with him and shows how much talent they have. Not only will the music blow you away, but Hozier’s humble reaction will only make your love for him grow. Watch it here.
- Bloodstream – Ed Sheeran
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While fans of Ed Sheeran already know about how Ed adds different levels of intensity to his music when he sings live, the first time he really showed this to the rest of the world was at the iHeart Radio stage when he performed Bloodstream. On stage all by himself with a guitar and a loop pedal, Ed stunned the audience with his talent and proved himself as a true musical artist. Listen here!
If you like live music, or discovering new talents from artists, or if you like music in general, you won’t regret listening to this list! These are just a few of my favorites. When you have the opportunity, take the time to look for your favorite songs being performed live. It might just make you love your favorite artists even more.
HCXO, Lola