Concert Review: Post Malone

When Post Malone released his sophomore album Beerbongs & Bentleys in April, it shattered Spotify records, amassing 47.9 million US streams in its initial twenty-four hours en route to over 431 million total US streams in its first week of release. So it should have surprised no one that when tickets went on sale in February for his tour with 21 Savage, many of the dates sold out quickly. The May 16th show at Charlotte's PNC Music Pavilion was no exception.

The weather leading up to the show was horrible, and many of the teenagers were forced to wear ponchos over their basketball jerseys. But by the time Post Malone hit the stage to some of the loudest bass you'll hear at a show, the rain was gone and everyone was ready to sweat.

Post Malone's stage was pretty sparse -- it was just him, a mic and stand, and some odd light contraption. But he didn't need gimmicks, lasers, a backing band, or fireworks. He worked the crowd, sauntering from one side of the stage to the other, rapping between sips from his Solo cup. The crowd ate everything he served up by dancing, singing, recording videos, and snapping pics of his every move.

Post Malone's set had familiar songs like "No Option" and "Deja Vu," but also featured newer tracks like "Paranoid," which marked only the second time he'd performed that song live. After "Up There" from his debut album Stoney, Post Malone took a seat, picked up an acoustic guitar, and finished the set with "Feeling Whitney" and "Stay."

After a short break, Post Malone came back out and launched into "Go Flex" Then came his biggest hit yet, "rockstar," which somewhat surprisingly did not find 21 Savage joining him onstage. Post Malone used that extra stage room to pick up his guitar and smash it to pieces before going into crowd favorite "White Iverson." After that, Post Malone went into a lengthy monologue about people believing in him and those who didn't think he would ever amount to anything. He pushed through it, ignoring his detractors, and urged the crowd to do the same with their own detractors, and then closed the show with a thunderous "Congratulations."

SET LIST
"Too Young"
"Better Now"
"Takin' Shots"
"No Option"
"Big Lies"
"Deja Vu"
"Psycho"
"Candy Paint"
"Paranoid"
"I Fall Apart"
"Up There"
"Feeling Whitney"
"Stay"

ENCORE
"Go Flex"
"rockstar"
"White Iverson"
"Congratulations"

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