WHY NOT
Opening the night was Minneapolis-based band WHY NOT performing their array of upbeat and
catchy hits that captivated the audience. I first heard of WHY NOT at the Radio K Back to
School Pop-Up show earlier in the year so it was really full circle to see them again at such a
renowned venue playing to a nearly full crowd. For this show they decided to up the ante by
adding Elijah Herchert on keys which created an all encompassing ambiance– you couldn’t help
but sing along. For one of their most popular songs, “CASKET” they brought up Papa Mybe,
who is originally featured on the track. With the right mix of auto-tuned vocals, smooth guitar
riffs, and heavy bass lines WHY NOT was the perfect start to what was to be an amazing
evening and I am looking forward to seeing where they are headed next.

TOMMY LEFROY
Tommy Lefory’s first ep, Flight Risk, found me via Spotify’s discover weekly playlist mere
months after it was released in November of 2021, and it hasn’t left my top 10 since. The duo of
Wynter Bethel and Tessa Mouzourakis pair honesty with heartbreak and desire with dread to
create a seamless picture of what it means to be a girl growing up. They began their set with
“Vampires”, a simple melody chronicling an even simpler idea: friendship.
“You can fall in love a thousand times / I just want for you to love your life” Bethel and
Mouzourakis sing with delicate, yet powerful harmonies, accompanied only by an electric guitar
for each of them and Minneapolis native Joseph Carl Hays on the drums. To commemorate his
first time playing his hometown, the three covered “Runner” by Alex G, a song Bethel says “we
didn’t write but the people we wrote that song [“Shoot”] about love it.” Together, Tommy Lefroy
embraced the anguish of everyday life, and invited the audience to join them. A must see for fans
of knife-to-the-heart lyricism and crying because you love your friends.

SAMIA
“I’m obsessed with Minneapolis...” singer-songwriter Samia Finnerty (Samia) informs the
audience as she prepares to serenade the packed mainroom at Minneapolis’s iconic First Avenue
concert venue. “... for me” she continues “this was the most important stop on this tour.” This
tour is the North American leg for her recently released second album Honey, a class-act in
intense storytelling and equal amounts of unbridled joy and sorrow. Despite hailing from New
York City, Samia rather chose to describe a letter from “The St. Paul police department” in her
opening track “Kill Her Freak Out”, a line fans were eager to shout out with her. Samia too
invited friends to share the stage with her including bringing back Papa Mybe to sing their
collaborative version of her song “Mad at Me”, producer of the album Caleb Wright for “Honey”
and self-proclaimed “favorite band ever” Tommy Lefroy for the closing song “Dream Song”. It
was a night of spreading the love of friendship to say the least. From heart-wrenching ballads to
groovy pop melodies, Samia took the audience on an unforgettable journey of self-discovery and self-love.

“Delight to live another night” she sings in the bouncy, synth based “Amelia” and a
delight it truly was to spend the night with Samia in what she describes as“... the best place, with
the best food, and the best people”. I speak for the entirety of Minnespolis when I say she is
welcome back here any time.