On Friday, September 26, Conan Gray hit the stage in Charlotte, North Carolina, for “The Wishbone Pajama Show.” The night started off shaky, with lightning pushing back the opening time and sets being moved to an earlier start because of an incoming storm, but it ended in a venue full of excited fans wanting another encore!

For his North American tour, fans had the privilege of having hemlocke springs start the night! After a quick run with Chappell Roan in New York, hemlocke springs hopped back on “The Wishbone Pajama Show” for a night in her hometown. Due to the potential storm heading towards the Queen City, her set was bumped up to 7:30 p.m. She brought such an amazing energy to the show with her awesome vocals and joyful stage presence! It was amazing to see fans with face paint matching her aesthetic and in pajamas and sailor hats for Conan. She played a bit of a shorter set, but when she introduced “Head Shoulders Knees Ankles,” the crowd erupted. This is an unreleased song of hers that she has been playing throughout the tour. I am so excited for its official release! Some other songs she played were “heavun, “enknee1,” and “gimme all ur love,” which are all off her 2023 debut album, going… going… GONE! I look forward to the next time she plays near me! 

As time for his set ticked closer, Olivia Rodrigo’s “Bad Idea Right?” started playing and sent fans into disarray. Conan Gray rode a bike on stage to start the show. He started off his set with “My World,” before flowing into “Never Ending Story” and “Bourgeoisieses.” I knew we were in for a night of dancing and tears when I turned around to get some crowd shots and saw tears streaming down multiple faces while others were jumping along to the beat.

His set was split up into four separate acts, with multiple stage changes. Each act was given a title: Act I was titled “a wishbone never breaks even,” Act II was “i got the short end of the stick,” Act III “i took the long way to realization,” and, finally, Act IV “i wished for love, and found it.” I loved the split between acts. It felt like there was a story being told throughout the set.

The show was a perfect mix of ballads sung to fans and theatrical stage design. The majority of his set was songs off his recent album Wishbone, but he also played songs from all over his discography, like “Maniac,” off his 2020 album Kid Krow, and his heart wrenching song “Family Line,” off his 2022 album Superache. He surprised the crowd by playing the lost verse version of his 2020 hit “Heather.”

Each night of the tour, he picks someone out of the crowd to break the wishbone with him. Whoever wins gets to pick the next song; this night, “Alley Rose”was the winner! After seeing his VMA performance, I was most excited to hear “Vodka Cranberry” live, and my breath was taken away. Hearing that high note live was spiritual. He came back for an encore of “Memories” and “Caramel.”

Conan is one of those artists whose love for his music and work is clear, and who shows deep appreciation for the fans who continue to show up tour after tour! Charlotte was one of the biggest stops so far on his tour, and you could see in his eyes how much it meant to him when he looked out across the 19,500-capacity venue. He had a few costume changes, and each one was more beautiful than the last. I wanted to add his final shirt to my closet! Another highlight of my night was sharing the photo pit with his incredible tour photographer, Dillon Matthews. I was so lucky to be able to attend this show, as well as photograph his beautiful set. Conan Gray has been a must-see artist for me this past year, and I’m very happy to cross him off my list!

“The Wishbone Pajama Show” continues on with stops in Missouri, Utah, Colorado, California and Mexico! He’ll also be performing at a few iHeart Jingle Ball events this December. Be sure to catch a show — you won’t want to miss it!

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