Fans all around the world, including myself, have been patiently waiting with excitement for Gracie Abrams’ “The Secret of Us Tour” to finally begin. Some venues, including The Met in Philadelphia, sold out within hours, resulting in Abrams adding more dates to the tour, according to Patriot News.
Gracie Abrams, a newer indie pop artist who’s had a passion for making since she was a teen, kicked off “The Secret of Us Tour” on Sept. 5, 2024, right here in Portland with special guest Role Model. “The Secret of Us” album debuted on June 21, 2024 and quickly rose in the charts. She scored number one on Billboard’s Top Album sales for the first time ever on July 6, 2024 and had her biggest sales week, according to a Billboard article.
This is her second studio album, but her fourth official tour — because of her extended plays, “Minor” (2020) and “This Is What It Feels Like” (2021). The two extended plays had more songs than a single, but fewer songs than an album. Abrams has performed live many other times. She was even one of the opening performances for Taylor Swift’s “The Eras Tour” throughout 2023, and will open again when Swift starts the second leg of the U.S. tour.
Abrams’s crowds are not nearly as big as Swift’s, but they have the same amount of enthusiasm and positive energy that forms a close connection between the artist and their fans. This was especially true when she performed at the Moda Center. Half of the stadium was blocked off, making it so that she was facing all fans — including those who were up higher near the back. There is no bad seat at an Abrams concert and you can feel the safety and love from both fans and Abrams from wherever you’re sitting. Tillet Bruno, a fan who attended the opening concert, says, “Gracie is so down to earth and she makes everyone feel so welcome!”
When asked about what they like most about Gracie Abrams concerts, many fans said they loved how nice all of the other fans were. I witnessed fans complimenting each other’s outfits, taking pictures of others, and helping one another adjust bows, which is a signature touch that helps you spot a Gracie Abrams fan in any crowd. It felt like a full girlhood moment, waiting together with anticipation for the singer to come on stage.
The opening singer, Role Model, came on at around 8 p.m. and performed for 30 minutes. When Gracie came on stage, at around 9 p.m., she opened with the first song on her new album, “Felt Good About You.”
Throughout the whole concert, she played all the songs on “The Secret of Us,” plus many older songs such as “Feels Like,” “Mess It Up,” “21,” and more! During slower songs — such as “Good Luck Charlie” and “Gave You I Gave You I” — everyone collectively held up yellow confetti attached to their phone flashlights because of the color of her new album. Watching Gracie have an “I made it” moment during the concert filled me with happiness and pride, knowing that her passion, hard work, and dedication have paid off. It’s such an amazing feeling to meet up with a bunch of strangers to sing and dance our hearts out together to songs we can all relate to — one thing we all have in common. “Gracie’s lyrics are so real and specific, and you can really feel the emotions in her words … She’s [also] such a sweet and adorable person,” says Sylvia Tanner, who’s been a Gracie Abrams fan since 2021.
Near the middle of the show, Abrams shared that there was a “surprise song set,” meaning she will be playing different songs at each show. The song for the Portland show was “Right Now,” a song that has recently become popular on TikTok. It highlights the feelings and reminiscence of moving out of one’s childhood home, and I think that connects back to how Gracie feels when she is performing.
The setlist of the concert got positive feedback from fans. Tanner says, “I really liked that she played songs from her older albums as well. I also liked the background projections and lighting and how they matched the vibe of each song.” By combining older songs with her newer songs from “The Secret of Us” album, Abrams created a setlist that kept fans engaged and had a song for every fan. Tanner continues, “Overall the show was super fun, but the crowd was a bit crazy at times.” She goes on to explain that there were people near her and her friends that got into a screaming fight, and security had to break themup in the middle of the concert, but everything was fine in the end.
Gracie closed with a fan-favorite song, “Close To You,” which is the only bonus track on the new album. It wasn’t originally supposed to be on this album, which Abrams shared at a concert in 2023, but the fans made it clear that they wanted it released. It was first heard when Gracie posted 20 seconds of the song on her Instagram account in 2017, which went viral, and fans have been asking for it to be released ever since.
In total, her performance lasted about 1 hour and 45 minutes, which has varied at other concerts. After kicking off the tour in Portland, Abrams is traveling to over 15 other states in the U.S., ending her U.S. leg of the tour on Nov. 3, 2024, in Indianapolis. Then, she will move onto European, New Zealand, and Australian dates throughout the beginning of 2025, ending the tour on May 17, 2025, in Perth, Australia.
Cora Lanford-Crick, who’s been an Abrams fan since summer of 2023, says, “Gracie is so adorable! … I love her music bridges so much and how she builds up energy in her songs and then basically starts ranting and it’s so fun to sing with the crowd!” Gracie has not only created songs with heartfelt lyrics but she’s also created a safe space. When she left the stage, the reminiscence of her music stayed in the air, leaving everyone with a night to remember forever and always.
