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It feels like the world is falling apart, and yet, the music’s still playing. Just today, Lady Gaga released her seventh studio album Mayhem, which has reverberations of Art Pop, but all grown up. If historical upheavals lead to cultural renaissances, then we have some major culture to look forward to.
Already, this spring is set to be jam-packed with concerts, so you’ll probably want to start planning which ones you’ll invest in now. For starters, Jennie, who makes up one-fifth of the K-pop phenomenon BLACKPINK, is embarking on her debut solo tour to celebrate her latest project, Ruby, which blends R&B, pop and hip-hop and features collaborations with Dua Lipa, Doechii, Kali Uchis, and others. She’ll be performing at Radio City Music Hall on Monday, March 10.
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If you’d rather hit the club, Paragon is having one of its final hoorahs before closing for good in April. During its short, three year lifespan, Paragon became best known for its event series “Dance Planet,” which brought some of the most iconic local DJs into one room. This iteration of the event on April 5 will feature queer ballroom legend Byrell the Great, FALSEBOI and Ariel Zetina b2b Miss Twink USA. If you prefer your club beats performed live and with vocals, FKA Twigs will be at the Knockdown Center for her EUSEXUA tour on April 3.
Then on May 3 and 4, Charli xcx will make her return to her favorite city to give us another round of BRAT. For those of us who missed her first performance at Madison Square Garden, this is likely our last chance at redemption. But if you did happen to go to her MSG gig, this will likely feel different from that performance: For one, it’ll happen at the Barclays Center, and she’ll be performing alone. I’ll venture to guess that when she planned her joint tour with Troye Sivan, she probably hadn’t anticipated that the album would be the cultural behemoth that it became.
Finally, there’s Beyoncé, who is gearing up for five back-to-back concerts at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey for Cowboy Carter starting May 22 and ending on May 29. Last month, Cowboy Carter won the Grammy for Best Country Album, generating memes of Beyoncé’s shock. Carter also went on to win Album of the Year, the first time Beyoncé has ever been given that honor, despite five previous nominations. For that reason, this tour is likely to feel like a long awaited victory lap.
For more concerts happening this spring and beyond, follow our best concerts guide, which breaks it all down by month.