The Idols World Tour Touches Down At Planet Hollywood On May 19th

All Photos By Rocky Kessenger/Through The Metal Lens

Anyone who has followed my writing, for any amount of time, knows exactly where I stand musically. I’m an old metalhead. I grew up on BLACK SABBATH, OZZY OSBOURNE, SLAYER, heavy riffs, chaos, death metal, and Deathcore, and good ol’ Punk Rawk! Most of the music I review lives in much darker, heavier places than YUNGBLUD does, so walking into this show, I respected him more than I was necessarily a fan. My son and his partner introduced me to YUNGBLUD years ago, and while it wasn’t exactly my thing back then, I always appreciated the stage presence he brought.

Then came his performance of “Changes” during OZZY’s final show. Suddenly, it felt as if OZZY himself were putting his arm around this younger generation, saying, “Pay attention to this one!” Tonight, I understood why. The show opened with black-and-white footage and photos of YUNGBLUD growing up over the years, while smoke flooded the stage and the band launched into “Hello Heaven, Hello.” The first half felt restrained and emotional before opening into something much larger, shifting into acoustic moments before exploding into “The Funeral.” From then on, the pace barely slowed down for the rest of the night.
And I mean that literally.

YUNGBLUD ran, screamed, climbed risers, worked the crowd, and controlled the room for nearly ninety minutes without letting the energy dip. It reminded me of the kind of frontmen older generations grew up watching, the Mick Jagger and Steven Tylers of the world, not because he is on their level just yet, but because he understands what being a rock frontman actually means.

One thing that stood out immediately was the crowd itself. I expected younger alternative fans, but what surprised me, rather, was how many older rock and metal fans filled the room wearing Black Sabbath t-shirts, battle jackets, and Heavy metal merch. At first, I honestly thought maybe they had only come because of “Changes,” but as the night went on, it became obvious they were there for YUNGBLUD himself! During “Fleabag,” he moved through the crowd hugging fans, singing directly with them, grabbing hands, and making people feel like they were part of the performance rather than just watching it. There’s something strangely old-school about that level of crowd interaction, and it never felt forced. It felt genuine.
Musically, the set was perfectly balanced between high-energy, stadium-rock confidence and the alternative, experimental, genre-crossing style of his early days.“Lowlife” stood out because of its electronic groove and almost GORILLAZ-like rhythm, while “Lovesick Lullaby” had the crowd singing loudly from the opening notes. Even songs I didn’t know, particularly well, still worked because the energy inside the venue never disappeared.

The emotional centerpiece of the entire night was “Changes.” The second those opening notes hit, the building exploded. Even with ear protection, the sing-along was deafening! Thousands of voices from completely different generations, screaming the lyrics to a BLACK SABBATH song together, felt surreal in the best possible way! What impressed me most was that YUNGBLUD never tried to outdo OZZY or make the song his own in some overdramatic way. He treated it with respect, and you could feel how much BLACK SABBATH/OZZY genuinely means to him, as both a fan and performer.

The encore ended up being one of my favorite parts of the night. YUNGBLUD returned with “Ghosts” and “Zombie,” slowing things down emotionally while somehow making the crowd feel even larger and louder. Before one of the songs, he told everybody to introduce themselves to the people beside them; suddenly, thousands of strangers were laughing and screaming “hello motherfucker!” to each other across the venue.

Written out, it sounds ridiculous, but inside that room, it worked perfectly because he had already built that sense of community throughout the night. That was honestly the biggest thing I walked away with from this show. Not the lights or production, but the feeling that everybody inside that venue belonged there together for those couple of hours. In a world where so many artists feel distant or manufactured, YUNGBLUD made the entire room feel personal.

I usually leave shows early after I finish shooting so I can beat traffic and organize notes before getting home. I didn’t leave this one early. I stayed through the encore because I genuinely didn’t want to miss what happened next, and that almost never happens anymore! I’m still not pretending YUNGBLUD suddenly became my favorite artist overnight, and I’m probably not rushing to fill my playlists with his catalog tomorrow morning. However, I understand now why people connect with him the way they do.

In a world where everybody wants to be famous, YUNGBLUD feels like somebody who actually wants to be a rock star. Whether people personally like the music or not, it almost becomes secondary once you see him live because the charisma, work ethic, and connection with the audience are real. And at least from where I stood tonight, he’s wearing that badge honorably!