A Sunday night is never an ideal night for a concert, but grandson sold out the Firebird, and the whole venue huddled in front of the stage waiting for the singer and his band to take the stage for his No Apologies tour.

The overture started as a slowed down, almost creepy, version of the “National Anthem” started to play. Soon following, grandson exited the side door and walked up the steps to the stage, the crowd at the level of hype that would remain all evening. Before he even spoke into the mic, he turned his back to the crowd to reveal the back of his jean jacket that read, “not your grandson” with his signature double x’s next to it.

He immediately went into it and began to sing his song “Stigmata,” the lights shining red during the first couple of songs as he jumped around on stage. By the second song the heat generated by the crowd and the performance had already forced grandson to shrug off his jacket and hoodie. He took a second to address the crowd, welcoming everyone to the show and stating, “We will give you more questions than answers tonight.”

Grandson, or Jordan Edward Benjamin, is a singer, songwriter known for making political statements with his songs, encouraging people to question the government ruling that is placed upon them. This was his first time headlining in St. Louis, and he acknowledged and thanked the crowd for making this evening possible. He encouraged them to also enjoy the moshpit, reminding them to all to respect the people next to them and make it a concert that everyone could enjoy. He then transitioned into his next song “Overdose.”

Grandson addressed many issues throughout his concert. He called out pharmaceutical companies and how they are rising the prices so much that those who physically need their products to survive can’t afford them, including those who are suffering from poor mental health. He touched on the issues in the U.S. that elsewhere are just seen as tweets, but, to those living here, they are more than a status update, they  are affecting people we know. He brought this transition into an introduction to his song “Thoughts and Prayers.” He further explained how he released this song in April of last year in hopes that it would change the world, but he further realized that we need to hold those who can make legislative changes accountable to truly make a difference.

Grandson continued the theme of being held back, saying there are things that you can control that hold you back and that sometimes those things can be even your best friends. He got the crowd hyped again by beginning to sing “Best Friends.”  The high-energy crowd thrived off grandson’s energy, as one person made his way to the stage to crowd surf.

As the rest of his band, except his guitarist, left the stage, grandson slowed the energy down and explained that they built in 10 minutes to every show to make each concert different and personal to each city. He explained that when he started doing music he thought he would begin to make a sudden impact, but realized that it takes more than one to make a voice be heard and that it can take forever to break down institutions to be restructured to benefit all. He explained how he knew St. Louis is a progressive city and further went into detail that at each show he partners with a charity, for this show he partnered with Loud Light. Loud Light works to empower young people and marginalized communities by enabling their participation in the democratic voting in St. Louis. He encouraged everyone to support Loud Light and to look up more about them after the show.

The show went back into motion as the rest of the band returned to the stage and began to finish up their set. Before singing one of his major songs “Stick Up,” grandson told the audience how he himself was still trying to find the ‘thesis’ of the show and what everything he had been saying would lead up to. He finally settled on, “As long as you care enough to ask the person next to you if they are doing alright then that is enough and you are enough.”

During the song, he got everyone to get down on their knees and jump toward the ceiling during the second refrain. The guitarist began to play his guitar behind his head, stealing the show from grandson for a brief moment. It was clear to see that the band members are good friends. All of them interacted and danced with one another throughout the show. They looked like they were enjoying themselves just as much, if not more, than the crowd they were playing for.

Grandson reached his last two major hits, “Apologize” and “Blood // Water,” where he encouraged the crowd to lose it and truly enjoy themselves, the low production lights going off like crazy. They swiftly exited the stage after the songs and were chanted back by the crowd. Grandson then explained that this was the first time they had ran completely through all the songs they had and they were going to finish up with a cover of Bob Marley’s “War.”

Grandson makes sure to grab your attention through his words and actions. He is a high-action performer who encourages free thinking and the idea that one day, because of people like his fans, the world will change for the better, even if it takes longer than anyone can plan for.