Concerts Reviews
LIVE REVIEW: The Captain of the Castro: Why Sam Smith’s Residency Is San Francisco’s New Sanctuary
Words by Starr Lee
SAN FRANCISCO- After an intimate residency in Brooklyn earlier this year, Sam Smith has brought the concept west, settling into San Francisco’s newly reopened Castro Theatre for a five-week run that feels deliberate and personal.
The neon marquee glows against the fog like it has something to say. Inside the 1,400-capacity movie palace, restored after a $41 million renovation, the main level fills quickly. No floor seating. Just a standing crowd packed beneath the balcony, bodies shoulder to shoulder, faces tilted toward the stage. Above them, fans lean over the railing, drinks in hand, waiting.
Smith walks out without fanfare.
They open with “Lay Me Down,” nearly motionless beneath a single spotlight. Dressed in a structured captain’s hat and a sweeping lace coat fastened with an oversized flower pendant, they look like a romantic voyager arriving somewhere that already feels familiar. The first note is soft, almost cautious. Then it opens.
In a room this size, nothing escapes. The Castros’ acoustics catch the grain in Smith’s tenor, the slight ache at the edge of sustained notes, the inhale before a chorus swells. The crowd is silent, standing still, listening.
When “I’m Not the Only One” begins, the temperature shifts. Smith lowers their voice for the first verse, almost speaking the lines before lifting into the chorus. On “You and me, we made a vow,” their voice tightens just slightly, intentional and controlled. By the second refrain, the crowd is singing quietly along. Not screaming. Not overpowering. Just enough to be felt. Smith steps back from the mic for a beat and lets the lyric hover before reclaiming it with a steady rise. The moment feels shared rather than performed.
After the second song, Smith looks out across the standing crowd below the balcony.
“This city means a lot to me,” they say. “My first show here, I was 20 years old.”
They tell a story about being left alone in San Francisco while a partner explored the city without them. About wandering through neighbourhoods by themselves. About unexpectedly falling in love with the place. “It feels very full circle to be here for five weeks,” they admit, scanning the room.
Then they squint toward the front.
“Wait. Were you here last night?”
A fan screams.
“Oh my God. You’re doing the residency properly. I love that.”
Laughter spreads across the floor and up to the balcony. That’s the difference when an artist stays in one place. The room starts to recognise itself.
Midway through the set, the lace coat slips away, revealing a custom Vivienne Westwood look: a black poet’s shirt with dramatic sleeves, tailored cheeky shorts, towering heeled boots striking sharply against the stage. The shift feels freeing. Smith moves differently now. Looser. More playful.
They introduce a new track, “My Guy,” sharing that for the first time in their career, they are writing from a place where the love is reciprocated. Followed by a cover of Erasure’s “A Little Respect”, “It’s a Wednesday,” they laugh, “but I need you to shake your titties.”
The balcony answers first.
A sleek blend of “Ain’t Nobody” and “I’m Not Here to Make Friends” turns the theatre intoa late-night dance floor. But soon they bring the energy back down to another cover
Later, bathed in deep blue light, Smith steps toward the piano for “Angel From Montgomery.”
“It took me eight years to finally listen to Elton and sing this,” they admit.
The arrangement is stripped back to piano and voice. No embellishment. The lower register carries weight. The higher notes remain clear and measured. When the final line fades, the room holds still for a second longer than expected before applause breaks through.
Sam Smith’s residency at the Castro Theatre runs through Feb.10th-March 14th, 2026. Tickets are available via the theatre’s official website. With just 1,400 standing spots per night and word spreading quickly, availability is limited.
Five weeks in one theatre does something rare. It turns a concert into a chapter. And this one is still being written.
Concerts Reviews
LIVE REVIEW: Luke Bryan Turns a Thursday Night in Ottawa Into a Country Party
People were already dancing and cheering as they walked to the line at the Canadian Tire Centre. That was probably the first sign that Luke Bryan’s Word On The Street Tour stop in Ottawa wasn’t going to feel much like a Thursday night.
Drew Baldridge got the night started while the arena was just starting to see people on their seats, but you wouldn’t have known it from watching him. He and his band played like the seats were already full. Covering Shania Twain’s “Man! I Feel Like a Woman!” was also a pretty foolproof way to get an Ottawa crowd warmed up.
Lauren Watkins came next. Cowboy hats were becoming harder to avoid, people were starting to groove, and the arena was noticeably filling up. Like Baldridge before her, Watkins wasn’t trying to reinvent country music. She was there to celebrate it.
Then Lanie Gardner came flying out in sunglasses with a band that looked like they had collectively decided it was still 1993, and it worked. They hit hard from the start, and Gardner had the advantage of playing to an arena that was now getting close to what it would look like for the headliner. People were louder, drinks were flowing, and it finally felt like Luke Bryan was next.
Except he wasn’t. Not quite yet. Bryan was a little late getting onstage, so a DJ was tasked with keeping a packed Canadian Tire Centre entertained. Instead of killing the momentum, it turned the wait into its own little party. By the time the lights finally went down, people were more than ready.
And when he finally came out, the noise was unreal. The Canadian Tire Centre looked packed. For a Thursday night in Ottawa, that alone was impressive. When Bryan started playing, everyone in the building seemingly knew every word. That’s the difference between knowing someone has a lot of hits and actually seeing what those hits do to an arena.
Bryan has been one of the biggest country artists of his generation for long enough that these songs belong to his audience almost as much as they belong to him. There were moments where he could have stopped singing entirely and the show probably wouldn’t have missed a word.
The band deserves just as much credit for how good the night sounded. Everyone on that stage could play. The guitars were huge, the rhythm section hit hard, and the banjo or slide guitar rang through the entire arena in a way that was impossible to ignore.
Nothing about the show needed to be complicated. Luke Bryan showed up with a killer band, a ridiculous number of songs people knew by heart, and an arena full of fans who wanted to party. Sometimes that’s enough.
Actually, judging by the noise inside the Canadian Tire Centre, it was more than enough.
Check out our favourite photos of the night below or head to our Facebook page for the full gallery!
LUKE BRYAN
LANIE GARDNER
LAUREN WATKINS
DREW BALDRIDGE
All Photo Credit: Gonzo Wassermann
Concerts Reviews
LIVE REVIEW: Isaiah Rashad – Lil Sunny’s Awful Road Trip at Infosys Theater at MSG
Top Dawg Entertainment artist Isaiah Rashad delivered a cinematic, intimate set for his Lil Sunny’s Awful Road Trip tour, with opener Alemeda in support. His third studio album, It’s Been Awful, captures the weight most people carry quietly: the depths, the despair, the need for community, the desire for higher purpose, and the pulse to push forward. He gave us soulful vibes like “SUPAFICAL,” controlled the tempo with “DO I LOOK HIGH,” and dropped vulnerable reminders through songs like “ACT NORMAL,” inviting the crowd into his reality, in a real slow-burn, confessional kind of way.
The project has achieved critical acclaim since its debut, with “BOY IN RED” featuring SZA (another TDE heavyweight) in the conversation for a Grammy nomination for Best Melodic Rap Performance, and rumblings that the project itself may be up for Best Rap Album. For longtime listeners, it felt more like an honest catch-up. He’s been making dense, emotionally rich music since Cilvia Demo, balancing trippy production with hard truths about depression, addiction, and family strain. Lil Sunny’s Awful Road Trip doesn’t just celebrate a new album, it reinforces why his voice has always mattered.
With seven of his stops now in the books, Rashad finally brought the tour to New York. He’s been hosting special meet-and-greets, allowing the faithful to come in early and catch his soundcheck, ask him questions, and build a closer connection. That sense of openness is part of what makes him so compelling.
This tour felt like a campsite sideshow in the best way. The show kicked off with him stepping out in a blood-covered white tee, and from that moment his goal was to connect with the crowd: taking pictures with his disposable camera, dapping up people as if he knew them personally, and grounding himself in the moment. Every city has its own flavor, and he embraced us from the start. Alemeda thrashed alongside her guitarist, while Rashad brought super fans on stage to sing the hook of “CAMERAS,” and Sunny’s camera rolled road memories behind him throughout. The whole production had a cinematic rhythm, balancing humor, intimacy, and autobiography without ever losing its sense of fun.
I discovered Rashad years ago through “4r Da Squaw,” and hearing it live reminded me how impactful the early material remains. I immediately identified with it— the pain, the glory, and the ups and downs that inevitably come with trying to establish yourself. At the show, he played a bunch of deep-cut favorites like “Headshots (4r Da Locals)” and “Heavenly Father.” These blended seamlessly with the new material. Fans were rapping every word, listening closely, or crashing into mosh pits. The audible uproar during his performance of “SAME SH!T” and “AIN’T GIVIN’ UP” proved that every pocket of his catalog hits.
By the end of the night, he reminded us all that he would always “Lay with us, Pray with Us, and Stay with Us,” a fitting summary of both the night and his larger mission. With just twenty-two more stops to go before a full-circle anniversary show in Inglewood, fans need to lock in before he disappears on us again. Lil Sunny’s Awful Road Trip plays like a tribute to everything he’s survived, and a confident step toward whatever comes next.
Lil Sunny’s Awful Road Trip Setlist:
THE NEW SUBLIME
M.O.M.
SCARED 2 LOOK DOWN
FREE LUNCH
WAT U SED
PARK
BOY IN RED
SUPAFICAL
WEST SAVANNAH
HEAVENLY FATHER
HAPPY HOUR
CAMERAS
GTKY
AIN’T GIVIN’ UP
WAT’S WRONG
LAY WIT YA
SAME SHIT
HEADSHOTS
4R DA SQUAWDO I LOOK HIGH?
RIP YOUNG
11 tracks from It’s Been Awful
4 tracks from The House Is Burning
4 tracks from The Sun’s Tirade
2 tracks from Cilvia Demo
Review and Photos by Anthony Grant @gallerybytm