Charlie Puth’s charisma shines at first Kansas City show in 8 years
“We declared Charlie Puth should be a bigger artist,” superstar Taylor Swift sang in her 2024 song “The Tortured Poets Department.” At 44 million monthly listeners on Spotify, five songs with over a billion streams and widely praised rendition of the national anthem at Super Bowl LX in February, some might say he’s as big as it gets.
It’s the lyric that inspired him to write his latest album, “Whatever’s Clever,” his biggest tour to date with stops across North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. Getting bigger comes with risks, like booking larger venues and putting on larger productions.
Based on the crowd size and very simple stage setup at his Starlight Theatre performance Wednesday, May 13, and the recent tour cancellation from a fellow pop star in his generation, it’s safe to say he’s just where he needs to be.
If he wasn’t, he wouldn’t have been able to say the historic Kansas City amphitheater is “the best sounding f****** venue we’ve played in so far.”
Over 6,000 fans watched the 34-year-old pop singer belt out some of his greatest hits, fan favorites and newest songs for over 90 minutes as a part of his Whatever’s Clever! World Tour. Puth’s built a dedicated following over his 15-year career doing what he does best: playing music.
The knowledge of Professor Puth, as he’s called on social media platforms when he’s giving music theory lessons, was on full display throughout his setlist. His vocals carried well through the open-air venue on songs like “Washed Up” and “LA Girls” and his piano work shined during small jazz-esque jam sessions with the live band in-between songs.
He took time to talk to the crowd after songs and even wished happy birthday to a few fans sitting in the first few rows. His upbeat sound made it very easy for the crowd to stand up, dance and sing along throughout the show.
It made for a great first concert for Overland Park native Nimra Syed, who ventured out to Starlight with friends from the University of Kansas as they all celebrate their impending graduation. They all got a sneak peek at his vocal abilities at a special VIP-only soundcheck hours before the 9 p.m. showtime.
Puth’s music has been a part of Syed’s soundtrack since she was in middle school, and it was a very surreal moment for her to be so close to him during the soundcheck. Syed and her friends are all computer science majors, and they needed this stress relief.
“We got goosebumps when he walked on the stage,” Syed said.
I’ll tell you all about it when I see you again
The show marked Puth’s first appearance in Kansas City in eight years, where he also performed at Starlight. At the time of that show, his 2018 album “Voicenotes” had just came out, spawning the hit “Attention.”
It was also a few years after “See You Again,” the song created for “Fast 7” in memory of actor Paul Walker, dominated air waves. Both songs were inescapable at their respective peaks and received the loudest reactions of the night. The songs also served as a reminder as to how long Puth has been a featured player in the music industry.
“The amazing thing about music, ladies and gentlemen, is that it can be your own public or private time capsule,” Puth said. “Your deepest and most personal work is timestamped and when you play that song 10 years later, you’re brought back to those feelings.”
Jordyn Napier, an Olathe native currently attending the University of Missouri-Columbia, was one of those fans in attendance in 2018. Like Syed, Puth was also Napier’s first-ever live concert then, and Napier said it was exciting to see him again knowing how he’s progressed over the years.
Napier, despite being a huge fan, was actually not planning to go to the show. She got the call from her longtime mentor with Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources and Related Sciences), Ryan Locke, who traveled from Omaha, Nebraska, and said he had an extra ticket since his wife could no longer join him.
Puth was on Locke’s must-see concert list, and he’d purchased his tickets months in advance.
Now, he gets to share in one of Napier’s family traditions of buying a tour shirt at the merchandise booth and immediately wearing it, for $130 well spent.
“I love a tour shirt, I love a memory and I love being able to tie the two together,” Locke said.
What songs did Charlie Puth perform?
Puth performed 19 songs during his show in Kansas City. Songs with featured artists had their parts sang by the backup singers:
- “Beat Yourself Up”
- “How Long”
- “Washed Up”
- “LA Girls”
- “Empty Cups”
- “Home” (featuring Hikaru Utada)
- “Cry” (featuring Kenny G)
- “Patient”
- “Sideways” (featuring Coco Jones)
- “We Don’t Talk Anymore” (featuring Selena Gomez)
- “BOY”
- “Reply To This”
- “Attention”
- “Cheating on You”
- “Suffer”
- “Love In Exile” (featuring Michael McDonald and Kenny Loggins)
- “One Call Away”
- “See You Again” (Wiz Khalifa cover)
- “Change”
