Last night, Jon Pardi, Maren Morris and everyone in attendance beat the winter storm and made it out to The Rave in Milwaukee, WI for a night of great music. With inches of snow falling from the moment the doors opened until Jon Pardi stepped off stage, all while 25 MPH winds crashed against the venue, for a few hours fans got to escape it all and enjoy two of the biggest emerging artists in country music today.
To get things started, the CMA’s New Artist of the Year and the Best New Artist Grammy nominee Maren Morris hit the stage. Thanking fans for fighting mother nature to come out, Maren performed a number of tracks from her debut and critically acclaimed LP, Hero. From start to finish her set was filled with great performances, that you didn’t even have to be a country fan to enjoy. But the highlight of her set however came at the end, where Maren finished with two of her biggest singles to date, her uber catchy ’80s Mercedes’ and her debut single, ‘My Church’. Morris has visited Wisconsin twice in the past couple months, and with a state that loves its country music and Maren Morris rising to stardom, this certainly won’t be the last you’ll see of her in Wisconsin.
Next up was the night’s headliner, Dixon, California native Jon Pardi, also one of the most exciting new acts in country music today. Bringing his full band to perform in support of his new album, California Sunrise; whether it was with his LP’s title track or his singles ‘Head Over Boots’ and ‘Dirt On My Boots’, Pardi brought the party to Milwaukee last night. Girls were head over heels and guys were dancing along raising their beer, and while most people stayed bundled up in their homes last night, Jon Pardi’s loyal fans were determined to have a night that they will not soon forget.
Peep our photos from last night’s performance below and check upcoming tour dates from Jon Pardi and Maren Morris.
Last night iHeartRadio and 103.5 KISS FM brought the Jingle Ball Tourto Chicago’s Allstate Arena in Rosemont, IL. With the sold-out Windy City crowd watching, some of the biggest names in music brought a memorable night of live music to the Allstate. Artists like Ariana Grande, the Backstreet Boys, Ellie Goulding, Daya and Hailee Steinfeld (just to name a few) were there to give the packed arena a night that they will not soon forget.
First up for the night was the lovely and diversely talented, Hailee Steinfeld, who kicked things off with her track ‘You’re Such A’. Also performing tracks like her DNCE collaboration ‘Rock Bottom’, ‘Love Myself’ and ‘Starving’, which went platinum early this week, Steinfeld put on a great opening set for her Chicago fans, dubbing 2016 one of the best years of her entire life. And with a platinum single and a critical acclaimed film in theaters now, with “The Edge of Seventeen”, can you blame her?
Next up, emerging singer Daya greeted the Jingle Ball crowd, calling her recent Jingle Ball performances as “such a dream”. Daya performed songs like ‘Sit Still, Look Pretty’, ‘Words’, ‘Don’t Let Me Down’ and of course the track that changed her life, ‘Hide Away’.
After Daya thanked the sold-out arena, it was time for Lukas Graham to hit the stage. Perhaps one of the top performances of the entire night, Lukas Graham exceeded the expectations of many. Like so many artists on the Jingle Ball lineup, Lukas Graham also have a lot to celebrate. Fresh of their three Grammy nominations, jumping from a spring Chicago performance of about 700 people to performing for a sold-out arena in Rosemont, and getting the crowd engaged with their tracks ‘You’re Not There’, ‘Mama Says’, ‘Strip No More’, ‘Drunk In The Morning’ and their big single ‘7 Years’, it’s a great time to be in Lukas Graham.
After fans finished singing along to ‘7 Years’, One Direction’s Niall Horan blessed the stage with a performance of his new solo track, ‘This Town’. Horan called Chicago his favorite city in the United States, a place where he would spend a lot of time while touring. Unfortunately for Niall though, he told the fans “it makes me upset that I only have one song to perform.” Don’t worry Niall, we are sure you’ll be back very soon with a debut solo album to perform.
Next on the Jingle Ball stage was Tove Lo, who not only played her biggest singles like ‘Habit (Stay High)’ and ‘Talking Body’, but also gave fans some awesome performances from her new LP, Lady Wood, including ‘Cool Girl’ and ‘True Disaster’.
And then it was time for probably the biggest performance of the night. That’s right, the Backstreet Boys are back, and they made a huge stop in Chicago before their forthcoming Las Vegas residency. Whether you were a mom who brought your daughter and her best friends or a ’90s baby (but birth certificate or just at heart), you probably lost your voice or hearing from all the screams. Opening with their mega-hit ‘Everybody’, which was the perfect opening track to set the tone for the rest of their performance, and later ending with their equally huge, ‘Larger Than Life’, BSB gave us years of hits and still was able to leave us wanting more. If you missed out on the Jingle Ball or if you were there and just a half hour of the Backstreet Boys left you feeling “incomplete”, well make your way to Planet Hollywood in Vegas from March to June and see what the Backstreet Boys “got going on”.
Met with the very difficult task of following one of the best selling groups of all-time, Ellie Goulding met the challenge head on and surely delivered. Goulding opened with her big hit single, ‘On My Mind’, and whether or not the track was inspired by Ed Sheeran’s displeasure of her rumored fling with fellow Jingle Ball artist Niall Horan, Ellie killed it. Goulding also performed tracks like ‘Anything Could Happen’, ‘Love Me Like You Do’ and busted out the guitar for her hit single ‘Burn’. Ellie hasn’t been around as long as BSB, but still her entire set was hit after hit. Ellie Goulding live will never disappoint.
While the Backstreet Boys were certainly the highlight for the moms in the audience, the night’s headliner was all about the daughters, as Ariana Grande closed out the Chicago stop on the Jingle Ball Tour. Ariana of course got things going with her huge 2016 single, ‘Side To Side’, and although she wasn’t joined by Nicki Minaj for the performance, Ariana didn’t need it. Grande kept the fans screaming and ended the night on a high note, and who can hit those high notes better than Ari? From top to bottom, everyone delivered for Chicago last night.
Check out our photos from the Jingle Ball last night in Chicago below, and peep the remaining dates on the Jingle Ball Tour here!
Last night B96 and Pepsi brought an amazing lineup to Chicago’s Allstate Arena in Rosement, IL with their annual Jingle Bash concert. Unlike last year, which was likely the warmest Jingle Bash on record, Chicago fans weathered the storm to catch performances from Britney Spears, The Chainsmokers, One Republic, G-Eazy, Alessia Cara, Fifth Harmony, DNCE and Shawn Mendes. The holiday show had something for everyone, and no matter who you were there for, last night was a holiday hit!
Shawn Mendes kicked off the night at 6:30, setting the tempo for the rest of the night’s performances on the guitar. Next up, super-emerging artist, Alessia Cara greeted her Illinois fans with performances of some of her biggest records, including ‘Here’ and ‘Scars To Your Beautiful’. Then, DNCE gave Rosemont a little flavor with their wacky energetic set.
Next up, One Republic hit the stage, cracked a few jokes and showcased their knowledge on surrounding Chicago suburbs with a hilarious Naperville shoutout. Soon after, G-Eazy stole the show with a not-so-radio-friendly performance at the radio concert. G may have left some parents scratching their heads with some of the tracks he performed, but he definitely killed it.
Then it was time for the artist who probably sold more seats than anyone, pop superstar Britney Spears. Although some hits were left out of her 30-minute set, Britney brought a big piece of her Pieces of Me show from Vegas to Chicago. With guest appearances from G-Eazy and Tinashe, and an elaborate dance routine, Britney easily delivered the best performance of the night.
Soon after, Fifth Harmony blessed the Chicago crowd with some of their biggest records. And then as the girls stepped off stage, EDM duo The Chainsmokers closed out the night with a huge dance party, putting a memorable ending on a memorable night.
Check out our photos from the B96 Pepsi Jingle Bash below.
Tonight Chicago’s 101 WKQX brought some of the best bands in rock and indie to the Aragon Ballroom for their annual The Nights We Stole Christmas. From top to bottom, start to finish, fans were in for a night that they would not soon forget. And while WKQX stole Christmas, the bands stole the show. With Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness’ opening set, Phantogram’s supporting performance, and of course Weezer closing the night, Night One of the holiday festivities was a huge success.
Up first was indie pop act, Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness, the Andrew McMahon-led group, who performed in support of their 2014 self-titled album. With McMahon killing it on the piano throughout the performance, taking trips into the audience on a couple occasions, energy levels were high during the entire set. And although McMahon first earned fame through his former band Jack’s Mannequin, no one at the Aragon was doing the #MannequinChallenege because the crowd and Andrew himself were live from start to finish.
Next up, Greenwich New York’s Phantogram returned to the Windy City after their Lollapalooza performance with Big Boi months ago. And just like Lollapalooza, the electro rock duo delivered, even if they were short an Outkast. Performing some of their best tracks, like ‘When I’m Small’ and ‘Fall In Love’, as well as some new tracks for the Chicago crowd, Phantogram rocked out for nearly an hour and exceeded our already high expectations.
Last but certainly not least, Weezer greeted the sold-out crowd to perform their catalog of hits. ‘Beverly Hills’, ‘Say It Ain’t So’, ‘Undone — The Sweater Song’, ‘Buddy Holly’ and ‘Hash Pipe’ were just a few of Weezer’s hit singles that got the crowd wild all through the night. Whether fans came for Phantogram, Andrew McMahon or of course the night one headliners, everyone was able to enjoy Weezer’s nostalgic set, which also included memorable performances from their 2016 self-titled album.
Check out our photos from tonight’s performance below and check out the remaining artists for WKQX’s The Nights We Stole Christmashere.
Last night, Tory Lanez gave a beyond memorable and energetic performance at The Rave for his biggest Milwaukee fans, on his headlining I Told You Tour, named after his debut album which released just months ago. Joined on tour by Atlanta singer-songwriter Jacquees, Kranium and Chicago’s Taylor Bennett, Lanez was in great company and set for a pre-Thanksgiving show that Wisconsin would not soon forget.
And after the three opening performances set the tone for the man of the night, it was time for Tory Lanez to greet the packed crowd. To no surprise, Tory Lanez’s set included a number of performances from his brand new debut LP, a long awaited album that gained Lanez a lot of attention thanks to his breakout single ‘Say It’. And while fans were rapping and singing along to performances of Lanez’s tracks which were record well before ‘Say It”s commercial success, Milwaukee went crazy when Lanez performed his big name singles like ‘Say It’ and ‘Luv’.
Other highlights of the Canadian artist’s performance included his performance of ‘To D.R.E.A.M’, and of course his up-close-and-personal interactions with the audience. Lanez finds a second home in the middle of his crowd, practically crowd surfing and having fans lift him up towards the sky as often as he was on the stage itself. At one point during his performance, Lanez went into the crowd, had fans lift and guide him towards the side, and at that point Lanez had his fans lift him up so he could extend his reach to a light fixture about 15 feet from the ground, Lanez then climbed that fixture and again extended his reach, this time to fans in the second level balcony. The excitement didn’t stop there either, moments later, Lanez hung upside down from the balcony railing, all while rapping throughout. While many artists before have gone into their crowds, Lanez brings it to a whole new level, and it’s just one of the many reasons that his Milwaukee fans got their money’s worth.
See our photo’s from last night’s performance below, and check out the remaining dates on Tory Lanez’s I Told You Tourhere.
Last night, rap’s modern day rockstar, Machine Gun Kelly, brought his headlining Alpha Omega Tour to The Rave in Milwaukee, WI. Performing for an energetic sold-out crowd, Kelly instantly gave praise to the infamous venue after opening the show with his 2015 track, ‘Alpha Omega’, where the tour of course gets its name.
MGK spoke about the ghosts that make home in the haunted venue, and joked with fans about having a conversation with the ghosts during soundcheck. “There was one song they wanted me to perform tonight,” Kelly told his Wisconsin fans. From there, Kelly’s band started to play his fan favorite, ‘Sail’, and the crowd went wild.
And from that moment and beyond, the energy levels throughout the venue never dropped. MGK showcased his stamina, rapping from stage left to stage left, performing tracks like ‘Wild Boy’, ‘Bad Mother F*cker’, his new Camila Cabello-assisted single ‘Bad Things’, and a closing performance of ‘All Night Long’, the final track from his second studio album, General Admission. When Kelly called The Rave his favorite venue, he surely was not joking, as MGK delivered a performance that Milwaukee will not soon forget.
Check out our photos below and peep the remaining dates on Machine Gun Kelly’s Alpha Omega Tourhere.
Last night, Atlanta rapper 21 Savage performed for his Indiana fans at the Old National Centre in Indianapolis. As the sold out crowd cheered endlessly and the lights turned low, the instrumental blasted throughout the venue for 21 Savage’s hit, ‘Slaughter Gang’. Savage had arrived. And while he spit bar after bar, the crowd went crazy, matching 21 Savage’s energy throughout the entire night.
Whether it was with his new Drake collaboration ‘Sneakin’, the fan favorite ‘No Heart’, or one of his many songs from his mixtapes The Slaughter Tape and Slaughter King, and of course his EP Savage Mode with Metro Boomin, the Indy crowd rapped along all night and Savage delivered for the packed crowd.
Check out our photos from last night’s performance below, and check out 21 Savage’s upcoming tour dates here.
99.7 NOW!’s “Triple Ho Show 7.0” isn’t only a mouthful, it’s one of the biggest concerts of the year, and not just in the Bay Area either, but anywhere in the U.S. From some of the most exciting emerging names in music, like Hailee Steinfeld and Zara Larson, to the biggest names in music today and yesterday, with Justin Bieber and Britney Spears, the SAP Center in San Jose has everything you could want and more on December 3rd. And while tickets are all sold out, those lucky enough to attend are in for a night of their lives.
And with such a great list of artists, it’s only natural that we already have a list in mind, of songs that we absolutely need to hear at 2016’s Triple Ho Show. From Justin Bieber’s Major Lazer hit collaboration ‘Cold Water’, to Meghan Trainor’s infection single ‘No’, there are a number of songs that we can’t go without on December 3rd.
Hit the jump and check out our list of the 10 songs that we need to hear at the seventh installment of 99.7 NOW!‘s Triple Ho Show, and although tickets are all sold out, check out 99.7 NOW! for more information and listen to the station for chances to win your way in.
Want to see Flume, Zeds Dead, Gucci Mane, Anderson .Paak, Dillon Francis, Tchami, Danny Brown and many more to close out your 2016? Of course you do! And that’s why we are giving you a chance to see them all when Reaction NYE returns to the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, IL on December 30th & 31st. Enter our contest with React Presents and you can score a pair of general admission passes to see it all for yourself. This event is 17+.
Winning is easy, enter at the link below and by following The Early Registration and Reaction NYE on social media, by sharing the contest with your friends, and by scoring yourself a free to the festival, you gain entries that increase your chances of winning! Contest ends Thursday, December 15th.
But why leave things to chance? Buy your tickets and check out more information here and get pumped for Reaction NYE by checking out their official Spotify Playlist.
Moments ago, Country superstar Keith Urban stepped off stage after delivering a memorable performance for his biggest Milwaukee fans at the BMO Harris Bradley Center, on one of the many stops on his headlining ripCORD World Tour. Joined by newcomer Maren Morris and excited Cubs fan/Atlantic Nashville recording artist Brett Eldredge, the ripCORD ripped through the Bradley Center, delivering a number of great performances.
And to say Urban came with great company would be a massive understatement. Kicking off the night was the Country Music Award‘s freshly crowned “New Artist of the Year”, Maren Morris. Perhaps the most exciting breakout star in Country music today, Morris’ major label debut, Hero, debuted number one on the Billboard Country charts earlier this year, something especially rare for a rookie. Performing a number of records from her critically acclaimed LP, including ’80s Mercedes’ and ‘My Church’, Milwaukee couldn’t have experienced the Texas native’s rise at any better time, and she certainly picked up a number of new fans after her opening set. Don’t be surprised if the next time Morris returns to the Milwaukee, is on another big stage and as a headlining act.
Next up was perhaps the happiest County artist in the world, Chicago Cubs fan and Illinois native, Brett Eldredge. Eldredge celebrated the Cubs’ World Series victory earlier this week by catching the Series in person with his father and brother, and he continued his celebration earlier this morning, joining the Cubs for their victory parade in Chicago, just 90 miles south. But as the lights dimmed, and it was time for Eldredge to step on stage, it was all about the music.
Equally as exciting in Eldredge’s life right now is his brand new album, Glow. His third studio LP, and his first Christmas album, Eldredge stepped back from promoting his new track (still a tad premature for Christmas), and instead performed a number of his biggest records and fan favorites to date. From his opening performance of ‘Lose My Mind’ to the end of his set with his No. 1 single ‘Don’t Ya’, energy levels stayed through the roof at all times.
After a brief intermission, while crew prepared for Keith Urban’s headlining performance, it was time for the man of the night to greet the Milwaukee crowd. On his eleventh tour, supporting his tenth studio album, Ripcord, Urban opening his set with his 2016 LP’s opening record, ‘Gone Tomorrow (Here Today)’, and from that moment the crowd rocked with Urban and enjoyed their night while realizing just that. Even though the tour moves on to the next city tomorrow, Urban and his Wisconsin fans had the entire night to enjoy together.
Following with tracks like ‘Long Hot Summer’, ‘Break On Me’ and ‘Where the Blacktop Ends’, the New Zealand-born singer hopped between records from the new album and some of his biggest career hits. With various highlights throughout his set, including a few songs performed at a B-stage near the soundboard, Urban closed the main portion of his nearly 20-song setlist with performances of his Ripcord tracks ‘John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16’ and ‘Wasted Time’, before stepping off stage. That was not all for Milwaukee however, as Keith Urban returned for an encore performance, capping off his 2-hour headlining set with an acoustic performance of his 2006 track ‘Stupid Boy’, and then ending a memorable night with his Fuse single, ‘Raise Em Up’. We can’t guarantee that Eldredge’s Cubs will win another World Series in your lifetime, but you can definitely bet that Urban will likely return with another tour of great Country Music.
Check out our photos below and see the remaining dates on Urban’s ripCORD World Tourhere.
The Early Registration 