LIVE REVIEW: Sammy Rae & The Friends at The Hollywood Palladium, Los Angeles, 10/17/24
Photos and Review by: Elle McQueeney
“Go put a smile on somebody’s face, go tell somebody they’ve got a place in this world, go tell somebody you wanna be friends with them.” This is the mantra of Sammy Rae & The Friends, and it’s a message that could be felt in the air even before they took the stage at the Hollywood Palladium on Thursday, October 17th, 2024. In anticipation of the show, the fans were buzzing with excitement, chatting with strangers as if they were long-lost friends. Everyone was eager to be a part of the magic that is Sammy Rae and the “Friends” who make up her 6-piece band of multi-talented musicians.
As for being part of the magic, the fans had nothing to worry about – from the moment she took to the stage, the power of Rae’s performance could be felt from the pit to the balconies. Donning a cape made of multi-colored ribbons and bathed in a hazy spotlight, Rae transformed into something of a preacher, pausing every few songs to share a message of positivity and kindness. It’s no surprise that, for some fans, going to a Sammy Rae & The Friends concert is akin to going to church. Thursday’s show was no exception: the sense of community felt between Rae, her band, and the audience was something bordering on spiritual.
Rae’s performances are built on a foundation of pure joy. She cares for her audience as if they were her own close personal friends. She wants them to feel safe, special, proud. And she wants them to have a good time. The nature of Rae’s music certainly helps with this mission, seeing as the majority of her music is upbeat and cheerful. At the Palladium, Rae played an array of fan-favorites off of her 2018 debut EP, The Good Life, including “Jackie Onassis”, “Kick it to Me”, and “Talk it Up” – all songs that had the audience grinning and dancing along. Then there were the new songs off of Something for Everybody, released this year. Among them was “Cool-Doug, at Night”, an unforgettable tune that is one of the few without Rae on lead vocals (on the album, it’s sung by Vulfpeck’s Jacob Jeffries). At Thursday’s show, it was sung effortlessly by one of The Friends, Will Leet (who also co-wrote the song); Leet’s impressive falsetto was a standout, not to mention the hysterical lyrics about the elusive “Cool-Doug” (a “disco-dancing fool” who “donates every year to NPR”).
Of course, even in the softer moments of the set, there was an undertone of positivity. As Rae sang “David”, a folk-sounding ballad off of Something for Everybody that details the titular character’s experience with finding himself in a world that pressures you to be something you’re not, some were moved to tears. Within that sadness, there was still a feeling of hope – and at the end of the song, when David finds his peace, it seemed the audience was left with the joy of connecting to David’s story. Perhaps Rae’s mission is not just to spread positivity, but to also give people a safe, supportive space where they are seen and understood.
There were saxophone solos, there were dance breaks. There was story-telling and costume changes and jumping on chairs. There were prop phones and flowers thrown into the audience, and a break to tune the instruments. And after 18 or so songs, it was time to end the show. Rae closed with “Coming Home Song”, which asked her audience to take care of themselves. “Leave a light on for yourself,” she sang, and the audience listened. “See, I was falling,” she continued, and a chorus of fans – no, more than fans…friends – joined in: “and I picked me up. And I picked me up.” It was an affirmation for the ages, sung in unison with a concert hall full of like-minded friends. When the song ended, Rae left us with instructions, as she does at every show: she sang, “Tell somebody that they have a place in this world. Tell somebody that you wanna be friends with them.”
