This weekend, Keshi stopped by Chicago on his Hell & Back Tour. The concert was a packed house at the Byline Bank Aragon Ballroom on March 24. Keshi is an American singer, Songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist from Houston, Texas. He originally started as a SoundCloud musician. Keshi’s popularity grew due to his musical style which is a combination of lo-fi beats and dreamy, soft vocals. One of his recent mainstream songs was “War with Heaven” on the soundtrack for the Marvel film, “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings”.
A tour for the ages
The concert started with two opening acts, the first being James Ivy, who is a 23-year-old producer, singer and songwriter from New Jersey. He performed a total of six songs with a couple brand new tracks. His music often features “grungy and dreamy” styles. Ivy did a wonderful job of preparing the crowd for the musical acts. Many of the public who didn’t know him ended up leaving, excited to hear more of what he had to offer.
Musical artist Deb Never followed this act. She started her career as a session guitarist before putting out her own music as a solo artist. Deb’s music has a mixture of grunge, emo and hip-hop elements while still being able to bring high energy. And that’s exactly what she did for the crowd. She has said before that her major influences in music are Nirvana and Three 6 Mafia.
Angelic vocals and the beats match
After the two openers and what seemed like ages, the lights dimmed and Keshi came out to the roar of his fans. From the moment he stepped out onto the stage, the crowd erupted and never stopped singing along to every song he performed. The set list consisted of about 20 songs. The majority were off of his most recent album, Gabriel, but he also performed many of his well-known classics such as “Beside You”, “Drunk”, and “Right Here”. Included with the performances of his songs were some acoustic renditions. During the performance, both “Talk” and “Skeletons” switched from a lo-fi track to an acoustic one, bringing waves of melancholy into the room. The crowd whispered along like they were mesmerized.
The concert offered a well-balanced mix of exhilarating and somber moments. Keshi also gave what was easily a performance of a lifetime and had the audience full of energy. Even the staff would occasionally sing or nod along to the songs.
Overall, it was a wonderful experience and would be highly recommended if given the chance to go. In the past few years, Keshi has gone from filling clubs to packing ballrooms and it is very clear why. His energy was almost magnetic on stage. This tour could be considered a victory lap and it was a win that is well deserved. Keep an eye on Keshi to witness a great forming in our musical generation. In addition, check out this article if you are looking for news on other types of music!
