Conan Gray took his Found Heaven tour to Budweiser Stage for a performing milestone
By Vaasavi Karunathasan
From making dorm tours and recipe videos on YouTube 11 years ago, to now performing at amphitheaters, Conan Gray’s career has skyrocketed, plastering him as a modern-day pop sensation.
Entering Budweiser Stage and heading towards the freshly rained-on lawn, I didn’t have the highest of hopes for the show. TikTok videos and Instagram posts on my feed have hyped up Conan’s Found Heaven tour to be a magnificent 80s spectacular. However, as it started raining minutes before his set, I knew I’d leave the venue soaked, which wasn’t the most ideal scenario. Despite this, Conan put on a night of some unforgettable performances and I couldn’t have been more grateful for sitting through the rain and taking it all in.
You may know him from tunes such as “People Watching,” “Family Line,” “Memories” or his viral hit, “Heather” which has amassed one billion streams. Conan started to showcase his talent on his YouTube channel in 2015, covering artists such as Lana Del Rey, Lorde, The Beatles and Amy Winehouse. Fortunately, his passion for music and singing soon evolved into a career, with his debut single, “Grow,” released in 2018. His first EP, Sunset Season, followed shortly thereafter, with the “Generation Why” music video surpassing 37 million views and counting.
Since then, Conan’s gone on to release landmark albums Kid Krow, Superache and most recently, Found Heaven. Despite Kid Krow being his debut, the lyricism and song composition were captivating and developed. The coming-of-age album explores themes such as friendships, betrayal and growing up. Two years later, Superache came along, with some catchy production and meaningful sentiments heard throughout. I vividly remember listening to “Astronomy,” the first single preceding the album, and being hooked on its relatability. In the song, Conan sings about the hardships and pain of dealing with a breakup – both platonically and romantically. This single was my gateway into discovering the rest of his discography, as I found myself keeping up with all of his future releases.
Conan’s currently on tour for his latest album, Found Heaven, with special guest, Maisie Peters. Found Heaven, released on April 5, debuted at number one on Billboard’s vinyl albums chart, which was indubitably a huge milestone for Conan. The vocals and instrumentals heard in the album capture a myriad of genres. From upbeat pop to slower ballads, Conan’s composure is consistent with his retro 80s popstar facade, with a sound resembling that of David Bowie and Cutting Crew.
On Sept. 23, Conan performed in Toronto at the coveted Budweiser Stage, which holds over 16,000 people. Curtains and stage props were being put up as the audience grew with anticipation for the artist. Black curtains with Conan’s iconic teardrop star logo appeared and within moments, the stage was dressed to the nines in ‘80s style decor, exhibiting the themes seen in Found Heaven. Once the curtains dropped, a sizeable gleaming star, which took up a majority of the stage, was revealed. His team adorned the stage in this extravagant get-up for what was his biggest show at the time.
City after city, Conan’s proven that he’s prepared to host some unforgettable nights and his fans continue to be thrilled for his smashing success.
Jill Stephenson, a fan of Conan’s who was at the show says, “I think he’s doing so well and it feels like he actually should be performing on a stage that size, like that show could not be constrained to a really small venue.”
Although Conan’s Found Heaven: On Tour is his largest tour yet, the stage setup and production design continue to impress crowds. Jill couldn’t help but notice Conan kicked it up a notch this time around. “I feel like he went a little more all out for [Found Heaven] and had the stage and sets really sort of in line with the theme of the ‘80s,” said Stephenson.
Opener Maisie Peters is an indie artist and a long-time friend of Conan’s. From commenting on each other’s YouTube videos, to touring together, the duo have been inseparable since they met. Although Maisie wasn’t the main act, the crowd went wild for her, as many knew her from popular songs “History Of Man” and “Lost The Breakup.” Maisie’s music showcases her knack for storytelling and her bright, yet soft, vocals constantly have me wanting more.
Soon after, Conan arrives on stage and kicks off the show with “Fainted Love” from his newest album. As he took the audience by storm with his rockstar vocals, Conan waltzed around in a two-piece red leather suit. Intricate silver detailing lines his vest which consists of tiny teardrop accessories hanging.
Conan continues to hone his special connection with his fans, through the plentiful audience interaction seen during the show, as the singer read signs held up in the audience aloud. Throughout the night, the artist performed some of his most popular songs such as “Wish You Were Sober,” “People Watching,” “Memories” and much more. Included in the setlist was his sentimental ballad, “Family Line,” where he shed a few tears within the first few seconds of the song. Despite Conan’s earlier attempts to mitigate the humility of his tears, the crowd embraced the soft moment as everyone around me continued to sway and sing the lyrics, filling in the gaps and keeping the performance alive.
Later, for the song “Bourgeoisieses,” Conan came out in a shirt that read “Belieber” in an ode to his only Canadian stop of the tour. This humourous ritual plays out at each of Conan’s shows, as he changes up his shirt during the song, into something unique for the evening. Some of his previous shirts have said “Burger Jesus, that one song I can’t spell,” “boygeniuses” and more, poking fun at the tongue-twisting name of the track.
Conan concluded his show with the slow and raw ballad, “Alley Rose.” As he performed, confetti began to cascade into the crowd. Stephenson weighed in on the glorious moment, “That’s a perfect song to end with, the drama is there and it really shows his vocal abilities too, so that was really good!”
As a film of star-shaped confetti formed atop the heads all around me, I was overjoyed by the shared sense of community in the space, knowing everyone felt the same excitement that I was. This moment made the concert one for the books — it’s the type of feeling that I know will live beyond the night and will always hold a special place in our hearts.
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