The highly anticipated American Heart Tour landed in Glasgow last night, seeing superstar Benson Boone play his largest sold-out Scottish show to date. It’s crazy to realise that only 2 years ago, Boone was playing the likes of King Tuts – and now selling out arenas.
First impressions walking into the arena, the attention to detail for the stage set-up is utterly incredible – with a large drawn-out walkway embossed ‘BB’ walkway with a large spiral staircase towards the back of the stage. I can already tell, we’re in for not just a concert but a production.
Opening up the show was British crooner Elliot James Reay. Now this is an artist I have come across before through TikTok (is this my reputable source for new music now?!), but Elliot has the most unique voice – I am a giant fan of Drake Milligan, who oozes notes of Elvis in country – and Elliott takes the ’50s and ’60s soulful melody and makes it his own. I Think They Call This Love is one of my favourite songs on the planet, from listening to it in my car to hearing it in a 14,000+ in the Ovo Hydro. Wow. Absolute goosebumps from start to finish. If you haven’t come across this man already, get him on your playlists as soon as possible. Playing an array of covers and original songs, Elliott got the Scottish crowd up and dancing from start to finish, and will 100% be keeping an eye out for his next Scottish date. 10/10.
Benson Boone teased the crowd with a quick VT introducing the tour before bursting onto the stage, and I know what you’re thinking, bursting? Yes, that man literally parted the screens at the front of the stage and brought every ounce of energy you could imagine to the room.
Sporting THE iconic blue glittery jumpsuit (which he admitted he hasn’t worn for over a year and has now become quite tight), the crowd went wild for the opening of the show with I Wanna Be the One You Call, Wanted Man, and Sorry I’m Here for Someone Else.
“This is the most personal song for me, and especially on the album, it’s the song which means the most – Man In Me” – I’ll admit, I felt a little bit emotional as this came on – I cannot emphasize how much of a showman Benson is – the outfits, mannerisms and of course, this is a Benson Boone concert so we had BACKFLIPS. But the voice. Oh, the VOICE – just absolute pitch perfection – even admitting he promised to never cancel a show, but his voice just isn’t up to scratch – the crowd in Glasgow didn’t notice any difference – he was incredible.
The audience ate up every bit of Boone’s personality and his cheeky and chatty personality before moving on to his ‘favourite song to perform’, Drunk in My Mind, followed by Slow It Down and Be Someone before going off stage for a short interval.
Now, at this point of the show, we have had fireworks, backflips, and incredible VT screens – what more can fans expect from Benny? Oh, just the Mystical Magical hit-maker travelling across the Hydro on a floating CHANEDELIER – it didn’t matter where you stood or sat in the venue – Benson made sure every fan felt immersed in the performance, and we loved every moment.
In the Stars is one of the most beautiful songs you’ll ever hear. Benson spoke about the story and how he was struggling with grief, and writing words down into song helped him write this – and hearing it live, just Benson with a microphone and no theatrics – struck a chord. We’re only halfway through this concert and already I am in AWE at what we’re seeing here. The voice doesn’t falter, and Boone’s ability to turn stories into a performance is nothing short of spectacular.
“It’s been a big year for me, and I am aware there are a lot of people in the room tonight who are first time Benson Boone gig goers – but this next one is for people who remember the older stuff” – proceeding to create a medley of Let Me Go, There She Goes and Sugar Sweet before finishing the second act with Take Me Home – his favourite song on American Heart.
Benson returned to the stage, after an outfit change – sporting a leather two-piece waistcoat and ‘AH’ embellished cowboy hat for Young American Heart and Mr Electric Blue before asking the crowd to help with ‘Momma Song’ as his voice was struggling. Love of Mine, Reminds Me of You – had the crowd singing along – and even gave us the treat of hearing Benson’s attempt at a Scottish accent (it was quite impressive to be honest, and I’m an English adopted Scot)
Beautiful Things sounded just as incredible live as it does on the radio – “if you don’t know any songs on my labrum, I guarantee you’ll know 6 words in this next song” jokes Boone to the crowd before a quick encore and change into a Halloween-inspired Gladiator outfit for Cry.
Honestly, I’ve been to a lot of concerts – but I’ve never seen this level of production in an arena before – if you can nab tickets for the rest of the UK dates – please do – I am desperate to catch Benson on his next tour now as this was a night to remember. What a voice!
Review by Lauren Page
