Kacey Musgraves Unveils the Star-Crossed Tour in Washington, DC
Date: February 3rd, 2022
Venue: Capital One Arena
Washington, DC
When Kacey Musgraves announced the album that would follow the Grammy-award-winning Album of the Year Golden Hour, she wasn’t just announcing an album but instead a story, a story of herself, her experiences, and the next chapter. Released on September 10th, 2021, Star-Crossed introduced the world to not only more Musgraves but a more definitive look into the singer’s life. It not only includes strong songwriting which she excels at but it was also accompanied by stunning visuals as well as a film that is now available to watch on Paramount+. With all that said, there was no doubt that the singer had an incredible night in store for us as we entered Washington, DC’s Capital One Arena.
Upon entering, the arena featured a large stage that recreated the staging you would find in a Broadway play. Large red curtains draped across the back of the stage while a large golden proscenium arch held them in place with a “K” engraved in the center of the highest point. Before the curtains would reveal what hid behind them, it was time for the first act of the evening.
Kicking the night off was a pop band from California by the name of MUNA {MOON-Ah}. Consisting of Katie Gavin (she/they), Josette Maskin (she/they), and Naomi McPherson (they/them), this band has been making waves in the music world as their fan base has rapidly grown since releasing their debut album About-U in 2017. It was their most recent album Saves the World though that was the star of this set as they played hits such as “Stayaway” and “Number One Fan.” With a little new and a little old, it was only right that they gave the fans a bit of a tease of what’s to come on their next album which will be releasing later in 2022. The first single from that album is titled “Silk Chiffon” and its recorded version features Phoebe Bridgers. It is the first song you can hear right now from the upcoming album and was coincidentally the last song of their set for the evening.
Up next was Mikaela Straus, better known by her stage name King Princess and has been dubbed by her fans as a “queer icon.” The name is one that they feel encompasses their entire personality as they bend gender norms and create more LGBTQ representation within music and in the public eye. Throughout her set she raised the energy within the arena, beginning with her latest single “Little Brother” off the upcoming album which was teased a bit throughout the set as it wasn’t the only new song we got. Catering to her fan base, she performed a few favorites within the queer community with songs such as “Talia” and one of her most popular songs “1950.” To close out the set, we got one more taste of what to expect in the new album with the unreleased “Let Us Die.”
The time had then arrived, as the stage was cleared and the sounds of ABBA’s “Lay All Your Love On Me” filled the arena while the fans started to dance and take photos of their night on the town. As the lights fell, a projection of a heart appeared on the screens next to the stage, in fact, they were an aerial view of the stage as it was formed to make a heart and projections would illuminate it in various ways throughout the night. The title track of the tour’s featured album then began to play, as the Spanish guitar sounds within “star-crossed” began, the curtains slowly began to open revealing Musgraves in such a moving way. As she moved beyond the curtains and as she got to the chorus of the song a large heart caught fire behind her creating a beautiful visual and an incredible opening to the show.
As the album and film tell a story, so does the live show. The setlist began in chronological order as she then grabbed her guitar and began to play “good wife” while colorful visuals and roses filled the background. Following that, “cherry blossom” picked up the tempo a bit and resulted in the stage and surrounding fans being covered in petals as they fell from the sky. Musgraves has mentioned in interviews that she designed the live show to look beautiful no matter where you sit and it was very clear that she and the team accomplished just that as the night continued and each song transformed the arena into something different.
When the fans entered earlier in the night they were all given bracelets and these allowed the production team to fill the space with synchronized lighting thanks to the technology found within. During the song “High Horse,” Musgraves kicked off her high heels and started a dance party as those lights began to blink and the fans danced around with her. Even in the slower songs such as “Space Cowboy” the area filled an emotional feeling and lighting while a disco ball created an atmosphere to mimic the stars. Following that, Kacey then sat alone on a stool center stage while a single spotlight illuminated her during “camera roll.”
The night continued with a trip back to the song that started it all and launched her into stardom with “Merry Go Round.” Then it was time for a bit of a change as she picked up a large scroll from the stage, selected one lucky fan, and commenced Kacey-oke, a fun tour moment she has done over the years as she and the fan play a popular cover song while the lyrics appear on the screen behind them. On this night, the song chosen by the audience member was Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams, a truly memorable moment.
To end the night, the song “there is a light” introduced lasers and a spectrum of colors illuminating the entire area while building into a dance party and the bracelets coming back to life while confetti made its way to every corner of the space. After she introduced the entire band and thanked the crew and fans, the lights dimmed as she picked up a bouquet of roses, and the Spanish guitar that began the evening returned. Musgraves then went on to sing the final song from the album, “gracias a la vida” as the curtains opened once again revealing a staircase covered in candles that she began to ascend before finishing the song and bidding adieu to the crowd as the curtains closed.
A beautiful end to the story of the evening, but like most concerts, there was a little more left as she returned to the stage to perform “Slow Burn” and “Rainbow” before officially saying goodbye to the energetic DC crowd.
Although the US leg of the tour comes to an end in February, you can keep track of what shows are coming up by clicking here. Make sure to check out the album and if you want a taste of the star-crossed: unveiled tour make sure to also check out the film on Paramount+.
If you happened to capture any shots of the night, feel free to tag us on social media at Shutter 16 Magazine and throw in #Shutter16 and #TwitFromThePit for the world to see.
