MAX AT THEATRE OF LIVING ARTS IN PHILADELPHIA
Philadelphia, PA was blessed to be a stop on MAX’s “Live in Colour” tour this weekend. The intimate show included support from Lauren Sanderson. Even though it was a chilly night, fans quickly warmed up as this became one sweaty gig. With a lineup like this, you couldn’t blame them for the non stop party that took place.
Lauren Sanderson walked out on stage, solo cup in hand, and fans immediately went off. A good chunk of the front row were clearly huge fans as they sang along to every single word and watched in awe, with a sparkle in their eyes, as Lauren performed. She had a very genuine personality on stage and really did everything she could to connect with her audience. You could see the absolute gratitude in her face as she told the audience an anecdote about MAX reaching out to her to support him on this tour. She even asked if anybody had a birthday and had the audience sing to someone.
MAX started his set on top of a giant lit up Rubik’s cube in the back center of the stage. From here once the party started it never let up. I honestly don’t even know where to begin about MAX’s set because he absolutely blew me away. Everything about it - from the setlist he performed, to the lights, to his band, to his amazing voice, and his dance moves, was perfect. If you are looking for absolute star power, look no further. His presence on stage is huge and he knows how to command an audience into being absolutely hypnotized.
Throughout the set he performed some of my favorites such as “Love Me Less”, “Blueberry Eyes”, and “Lights Down Low”. Prior to performing “Lights Down Low” he had the audience pull out all of their phone lights to set the mood and told the audience, “Love the right person at the right time”. He brought along such a positive message within his performance that really engulfed your attention and made you forget about anything outside of the room. He even performed a cover of OutKast’s “Ms. Jackson”. He spent time talking to the audience in between songs to connect with the crowd and possibly to even give himself a breather, because the minute the music started for each new song, he was dancing his heart out. You could find him cartwheeling across the stage, jumping, spinning, and dancing along with members of his band. What was really mind blowing was how he did this while absolutely nailing every single note. His tone was killer and his falsetto high notes were dead on. His range is truly impressive.
For his last song “Mugshot”, he had the entire audience off their feet, jumping up and down as they screamed along with the music. He doused everyone in water on the last chorus and really went out with a bang. Though this short tour will be over, I recommend checking out MAX’s music and catching him the next time he goes out to play shows. You’d be in for an incredible night out
Nicole DiBenedetto is a photographer based out of New Jersey. She likes making new friends and meeting new people so catch her out in the pit and say hi!