Live Recap: Carly Rae Jepsen and Empress Of at Aragon Ballroom
This past Saturday night, Carly Rae Jepsen wrapped up her North American “So Nice” tour with a phenomenal show at Aragon Ballroom, also featuring Empress Of as the support.
I’ve been a big fan of Empress Of, the musical project of Lorely Rodriguez, since 2016, when I heard her single “Woman Is a Word,” so it was exciting to see her playing such a big room. Empress Of’s set began with Rodriguez’s DJ first taking the stage to hype up the audience, and Rodriguez quickly followed. Empress Of started off performing “Save Me” from her 2022 EP of the same name, and continued to weave in songs from her three albums. The set also included a cover of “Man’s World” by Marina. All throughout her performance, Rodriguez mesmerized the crowd with her fluid and poetic dancing.
As it got closer to the time of Carly Rae Jepsen’s performance, The Aragon Ballroom was overflowing all the way to the back wall of the venue with eager fans ready for the main event—this was Jepsen’s first time back in Chicago since 2019, and the majority of the audience members were decked out in neon colors, sequins and glitter to celebrate the special occasion. The sparkle of the crowd really added to the positive mood of the show.
The stage design featured fluffy clouds and huge stars as the backdrop, as well as a round screen that resembled the sun or the moon. To kick off Jepsen’s set, the screen projected a video of a talking moon, which welcomed the band onstage for the first song, “This Love Isn't Crazy” from the 2020 Dedicated Side B. Jepsen and her bandmates were rocking sequins that coordinated with many of the audience members’ outfits, and she kept the excitement high by setting off confetti canons as early as the first song.
The setlist featured many songs from Jepsen’s 2022 album The Loneliest Time, like “Joshua Tree, “Sideways,” and “Western Wind,” but she and her band performed a whopping 28-songs, allowing the crowd to journey through her entire discography. One of those highlights was of course the massive hit “Call Me Maybe” from Jepsen’s 2012 album Kiss— the entire audience sang along so loudly it was actually difficult to hear Jepsen singing in the back of the venue over the sound of the crowd. Jepsen put on a great performance through and through, continuing to dance and move about the stage with high energy that persisted through the entire show, and that was only enhanced by her stunning stage production. The confetti canon was put to use a few other times, and Jepsen even did an outfit change about halfway through the set. Another fan favorite of the night was the title track of the 2022 album, “The Loneliest Time,” which has garnered massive popularity lately thanks to a TikTok trend.
See where you can catch Carly Rae Jepsen on tour next here, and check out the photo gallery of the evening below.
