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In all of the best ways, that is. It’s been a pleasure living my dream of writing about music and entertainment in my hometown. This opportunity positioned me as the historian of the music scene in St. Louis during current times. I don’t take that responsibility lightly, and I’ve written more than 200 articles and attended over 70 concerts, comedy shows and festivals in St. Louis in less than 365 days.

As an avid music listener and fan, I’ve attended concerts throughout my entire life, beginning with the Scream Tour 2 at the Savvis Center in 2002. However, attending concerts as a music critic was a fresh experience. Once my perception shifted, my critical lens couldn’t turn off. It’s allowed me to experience entertainment events in a new way, not driven by criticism but by a desire to learn as much as possible about the acts on stage, the instruments they played and the respective genres they embodied.

Of course, some shows impacted me more than others. While I walk away from every concert with a pocket of hope, a few live experiences felt transformative. The bass thumps forced me to think while the vocals pierced through me. The lighting played with my emotions as the voices of each instrument teleported me to otherworldly places, covering my body with goosebumps as I closed my eyes and let the tunes take me away.

These shows were magic.

Here are my five favorite shows from my first year at the newspaper, and a few honorable mentions.

Paul Simon at Stifel Theatre

April 28, 2025

When I attended Paul Simon’s “A Quiet Celebration� tour at the Stifel Theatre in April, I honestly had no idea what to expect. Being born in 1991, I’d missed the acclaimed, international run of folk duo Simon and Garfunkel. Their award-winning song “Mrs. Robinson� topped the charts long before I had a Walkman and headphones. Although I’d familiarized myself with Simon’s history, discography and concert setlist, I was still a novice to his music as I entered the theater doors.

Simon split his set in half, performing his newest album, “Seven Psalms,� in its entirety first before diving into his bag of hits. Upon arrival, I had my heart set on hearing the twangy rhythms of “Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard� and the sultry drums in “50 Ways to Leave Your Lover.� But it was the “Seven Psalms� portion that captivated me the most.

It was one of the first concerts I’d attended that curated the lighting effects to match the emotions of the songs. I was overwhelmed with feelings as Simon sang, and the accompanying band transported the audience into an ethereal grassy knoll.

Tears stung my eyes and the records somehow served as a eulogy to music as the 83-year-old hitmaker progressed through tracks. Despite stirring up the emotions of the audience like a shaken soda bottle, Simon remained relatively still throughout the performance. His voice and his stories demanded more attention than any movement ever could.

Kendrick Lamar and SZA at Enterprise Center

June 4, 2025

I was at the laundromat in 2019 when I first discovered SZA’s music. The dryer was near its final spin cycle when a random Soundcloud playlist sent her song “Shattered Ring� through my earbuds, and I was blown away. My first impression was that she was a musical fairy. Years later, I discovered she was a girl from St. Louis just like me.

Seeing SZA perform in St. Louis is always special. I saw her at the Ready Room back in December 2017, shortly after “CTRL� dropped, and she began to gain mainstream recognition. Her hometown sets are always full of love for St. Louis, and the crowd is full of longtime fans and an overwhelming number of SZA’s family members who come out to support.

With the “Grand National� tour, St. Louis got a double dose of record company Top Dawg Entertainment, with labelmate, Pulitzer Prize-winning rapper Kendrick Lamar, co-headlining alongside SZA.

Lamar has a way of creating music that is reflective and introspective. I knew when I first heard his song “Kush and Corinthians� in 2011 that I would have a love-hate relationship with the West Coast emcee. His music is steeped in relevance and culture, and his bars are so bold. Yet seeing so much of myself through his lyricism always makes me feel uncomfortable, and his ongoing beef with Drake still feels confusing as a music fan, forcing me to pick a side.

SZA and Lamar bounced between performing solo hits and intertwining them with collaborations like “All the Stars� and “30 for 30.� It was a sweet dance that showcased the connectivity between hip-hop and R&B, blending magic and the streets on stage while establishing SZA and Lamar as the official leaders of the new school.

It was the biggest concert of the summer before the St. Louis summer even started.

Lil Wayne & The Hot Boys at Enterprise Center

February 28, 2025

Hip-hop lovers rejoiced on social media when Lil Wayne and the Hot Boys announced they were gracing a few cities with a reunion tour. The New Orleans rap cadre hadn’t performed together on stage in over 15 years. Thankfully, St. Louis made the cut, with a sold-out show at the Enterprise Center in March.

With Big Tymer members Mannie Fresh and Birdman along for the tour, rappers B.G., Turk and Juvenile kicked off the show with nostalgic songs like “Ha,� “Still Fly� and “Welcome 2 Tha Nolia.� After each member performed a few records, Lil Wayne hit the stage in a yellow puffer coat and dark shades to run through a slew of tracks, performing songs in their entirety and thanking the audience after each one.

This show is one of my favorites for many reasons. Millennial rap lovers waited our entire adult lives to see this reunion, with past tour plans being sullied due to B.G. and Turks incarcerations and legal disputes with record labels. There was a memorable lyrical banter between Lil Wayne and B.G. as they rapped their verses on “I Need a Hot Girl,� a raging solo from Yayo the Drummer and live performances of 16 of my favorite Lil Wayne songs.

After footage showing on-stage issues during previous shows circulated online, social media users questioned if the Hot Boys could live up to the hype surrounding their reunion tour. They did not disappoint in St. Louis. However, it still broke my heart that the setlist didn’t include Lil Wayne’s “The Block Is Hot.�

But critics can’t be choosers.

All American Rejects at the Factory

December 10, 2024

Seeing the All-American Rejects perform at the Factory was a dream come true because at the heart of every critic, there is a fan.

I spent my adolescence using a tape recorder to catch songs from the “Move Alongâ€� album on Z107.7, long before Livewire and streaming music platforms emerged. ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ were the band that always had a song for what I was experiencing. So when I stood to the right side of the stage and heard lead singer Tyson Ritter belt out the lyrics to “Stab My Backâ€� and “Dirty Little Secret,â€� my inner child was pleased.

I had never seen the All-American Rejects perform live before. Experiencing this show enhanced my critical lens of rock ’n’ roll shows because I began to recognize the influence classic rockers had on millennial bands. Ritter moved with the flair and boldness of Rolling Stones’ front man Mick Jagger, leading me down a rabbit hole of rock ’n’ roll reverie, uncovering songs from bands I’ve always heard of but never listened to.

I learned at a young age that some of the best songs on albums are B-sides that never achieve mainstream acclaim. Still, I was surprised when the band performed “Dance Inside,� which wasn’t an album single and didn’t have a music video, aside from a montage of live performances strung together. But they performed it in St. Louis.

I happily left my voice at the Factory that night after screaming one of my favorite songs at the top of my lungs with tears streaming down my face.

Beth Bombara at Joe’s Cafe

September 26, 2024

Joe’s Cafe is my favorite venue in St. Louis. I stumbled upon it in 2024 while exploring the Skinker-DeBaliviere neighborhood during PorchFest. Right next door to the main festival stage was a tucked off storefront with an array of odd statues near the entrance. On the side was a majestic outdoor space reminiscent of the junkyard garden from the 1996 Nickelodeon film “Harriet the Spy.� Given that the film was a childhood favorite that inspired me to use composition notebook as a young writer, I knew Joe’s Cafe was exactly where I needed to be.

Less than a week later, I made my way back to the venue to see St. Louis singer Beth Bombara perform. Imagine my surprise when I realized the inside of Joe’s Cafe was just as amusing as its exterior, with knack knicks, hidden seating spaces and a BYOD and food policy that made it feel like home.

Although I’d never seen Bombara perform, she was an artist I began watching when I first started at the newspaper. I’d listened to her music on streaming platforms, and there was a gently strength and passion in her lyrics that reminded me of my own writing. Her live set didn’t disappoint as she bounced between guitars, singing a medley of songs that were a little bluesy, a little country and a little rock n’ roll simultaneously.

Right as I thought the show couldn’t get any better, a sea of bubbles rained from the ceiling as Bombara sang her final song. It was a wondrous and intimate concert experience that was unforgettable.

Honorable Mentions

• Post Malone and Jelly Roll with Sierra Ferrell at Busch Stadium: This show was electric. Jelly Roll is a hell of a performer, and Post Malone is one of the biggest hitmakers of my generation. I’ve enjoyed watching them both transition more into contemporary country music.
• Justin Timberlake at Enterprise: A night of early aughts pop music with a millennial icon that took us on a journey through decades of hits.
• Smokes n’ Jokes Comedy Shows: There’s so much love, laughter and discovery at Smokes n’ Jokes. I always leave asking, “Well, who says St. Louis ain’t funny?â€�
• Lettuce at MATI 2024: I’ve never had a more out of body, otherworldly experience at show than when I saw Lettuce.
• Augustana at City Winery: When Augustana performed “Boston,â€� the teenage girl who heard the song for the first time on the CW show “One Tree Hillâ€� was pleased.
• AJ McQueen at HUSTLE3 C1T4: McQueen is one of the best emcees coming out of St. Louis right now and seeing his emotion-fueled, unplugged set was a real treat.
• PorchFest 2024: An amazing opportunity for music discovery in St. Louis.
• John Legend at the Muny: The Muny stopped doing concerts in August 1991, just two weeks after I was born. I’m honored that my first review for the newspaper was EGOT winner John Legend performing on the Muny stage, marking the return of music concerts to the historic theater.