The Glory Sound Prep tour was everything I needed and more in one night of musical excellence.
It all started out with a band by the name of Lawrence. Lawrence the Band is a US-based soul-pop group founded by New York City-raised siblings Clyde Lawrence and Gracie Lawrence who have been singing, performing, and writing songs together since their early childhood. Now, Lawrence is an eight-piece soul-pop group who was the first act signed to Jon Bellion’s record label. Clyde Lawrence was not at the Armory because he was off scoring a film so the night was left to Gracie and the band.
With the line circling the block making their way into the doors of the Armory, a group of loyal Lawrence fans screamed as the band took the stage. Every member of the band was full of energy and the crowd could feel it. Songs like Make a Move had the crowd jumping along with the energetic horns and screaming with every whip of Gracie’s hair as she sang her heart out. To say that her voice was impressive would be an understatement. She had the energy and the voice to fill the expansive Armory main room on her own and when you pair that with the incredible guitar, gorgeous horns and drums, you have a set worth waiting in line for.
The great thing about Lawrence was how visually appreciative they were of everyone in the room. You could tell that they had a passion for the music they were playing and were excited every single time they took the stage. I will be seeing this band again you have my word.
The sold-out Armory was an impressive sight when the house lights came on. It wasn’t long after Lawrence was done before Marc E. Bassy took the stage. He came out in a leather jacket over the top of an all-white outfit. He carried himself with confidence and it seemed like the whole front row was swooning as he sang. With 3 million monthly listeners it wasn’t a surprise when the whole Armory seemed to sing along to songs like Dirty Water, You & Me, and Morning. The man is an impressive artist, he sounded just as great live as he does on his Spotify and he sure knows how to put a show.
Darkness fell over the armory and a string of green began glowing high on the stage. One familiar voice rang out over the venue, “Y’all better jump when this hits.” The music started and the sounds of adoration from the audience almost drowned out the sound of Jon Bellion’s song JT.
I don’t think I’ve ever had my jaw drop like it did in those moments. Bellion wore the same jacket that he does in the Stupid Deep music video. The royal blue coat with gold accents looked even better in person than it did in the videos and it brought the human into the music. Bellion paraded from one side of the stage to the other belting out lyrics. Lights reached to the heavens and I was stuck mouth open looking up at everything unfolding in front of me.
The energy was high but Jon Bellion slowed it down for a moment with the song “Conversations With My Wife.” The lights went low and an array of stars lit up behind the artist. Every lighter and phone light in the venue was raised to the sky as people swayed along to the music.
Shortly after the energy was brought right back up when Bellion challenged his band, whoever couldn’t keep up had to do 100 push-ups after the show. The band would play something and then Bellion would sing it back acapella. I sat there in awe, I knew the man was talented but this was just showing off.
The night raged on as Bellion worked through his new music and got into the classics like Guillotine and All Time Low. It wasn’t long before we heard goodnight and Bellion left the stage to deafening cheers. The lights went dark and chants filled the room begging for an encore. He ended up playing two extra songs, the first was an emotional acoustic rendition of Woke the F*ck Up that gave the song a new beauty and depth followed by an absolutely nuts live performance of Good Things Fall Apart.
Bellion took the crowd on a journey with him, he wasn’t being someone the industry wanted him to be, he was being himself. Millions of listeners and a loyal following hadn’t turned the man to a sell-out, it turned him into an inspiration. Giving fans a reason to disconnect from their phones, be in the moment and be themselves. The night was packed with amazing music from start to finish and it’s a night I would love to relive over and over. Bellion is easily one of the best artists right now and seeing him live was a dream come true. If you can make another tour date, do it.
