Andy Grammer—known for his hits “Honey I’m Good,” “Fine by Me” and “Keep Your Head Up”—sang to a sold out crowd at the Belasco Theater in downtown Los Angeles on Thursday night. Most of the tickets are general admission, meaning fans could stand and dance along to his upbeat tunes. Her Campus sent one music critic who has seen Grammer perform four times before, and one critic who had yet to experience him live.
Here’s what Lindsay thought:
Yep, this is my fifth time seeing Grammer perform; I’ve previously listened to him at the House of Blues in LA, at the Greek Theatre in LA, at the Boston Pops Fourth of July concert in Boston and at the 2018 Women’s March in LA. Every time, Grammer brings his energy and radiant smile that always reminds me that he loves what he does.
I learned that he listened to Taylor Swift’s “Feeling 22” on the radio and wondered what the 32-year-old man equivalent would be, and sang the crowd “Grown Ass Man Child.” “This is what it feels like, whoa oh oh oh oh/ I said, this is what it feels like, whoa oh oh oh oh/ I pay the bills, I make deals/ But I still know how to get wild,” which was fun to hear the backstory of and showed off Grammer’s range with surprising punk-like screaming.
He also added one song to his set that he said he didn’t do the night before, which is about “every single relationship I had in college.” He had a false start, but then slowly sang “Smoke Clears.” Though he touched on all his hit songs, Grammer was great about introducing the audience to numbers from his new album, The Good Parts, released in Dec. 2017.
Overall, I appreciated his genuine passion for music that lights up the stage. He even played several instruments himself during the night, from guitar to keyboard to trumpet. Grammer said he feels vulnerable and insecure sometimes that his sweet music isn’t “dark and sexy” enough. But “when the world tries to tell you not to shine, say ‘fuck that,'” Grammer told the crowd.
Here’s what Emily thought:
Andy Grammer sure knows how to put on a show! With the positive vibes and crazy energy that his songs bring, anyone would be lucky to witness such a fun time. Grammer sang his most popular songs, like “Keep Your Head Up” and “Honey, I’m Good,” while including many hits off The Good Parts.
Despite what most artists sing about, Grammer is all about staying positive and cheeky. His entire set focused on the happy parts of life, and he mentioned his focus on the fact that we sometimes want to listen to the “bad wolf” inside of us, but we need to make sure to feed the good one that wants to come out. As someone who has never been to an Andy Grammer concert, it was surprising how into his music he was. He and his band danced to the beat of every song, and the energy that they all felt never went away! It seemed as if his band is his family, and the involvement of their talent in the show was just as equal to Grammer’s. His back-up singers even got solos, and his female supporter got to belt out Demi Lovato’s “Sorry Not Sorry.”
It was such a fun, energizing night, and Andy Grammer is definitely someone who should be on everyone’s radar.
Photos courtesy of Lindsay Weinberg and Emily Lentz.