Set to grace Australian shores in November, Post Malone opened his If Y’all Weren’t Here, I’d Be Crying world tour on July 8th with a sold-out show at the Ruoff Music Center in Noblesville, Indiana.
In front of 24,000+ fans, Malone unveiled his 10-piece backing group which included a string quartet. One night later, he was back onstage at the Riverbend Music Centre in Cincinatti Ohio, clearly thrilled to share the stage with his impressive new ensemble.
“I’m super fucking new to playing with a beautiful fucking band, but I’m gonna try my best,” he stated after the opening song, “Better Now”, according to the Cincinatti Enquirer.
Malone also played guitar on six songs, including several from his eagerly-awaited fifth album, Austin, due to be released on July 28th. “Overdrive” and “Enough is Enough,” were delivered on an acoustic guitar with a cigarette dangling from his mouth. Prefaced by an apology of sorts for his guitar skills, “Overdrive” evoked a distinct amount of vulnerability.
“I spend my life on overdrive / I live my life so overtime / And there’s nowhere I can hide/ I’d do anything to be cool to you.”
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If it sounds like a scene from a hectic life, it’s probably because it is. Post Malone’s career has been stratospheric from the moment he released his debut album, Stoney, in 2016. Each of his four albums have gone multi-platinum; he’s also an 8x diamond-certified Grammy Award-nominated artist.
A good deal of that was covered in a career-spanning 25-song set, which leant most heavily on hits from 2018’s Beerbongs & Bentleys, Stoney and 2019’s Hollywood’s Bleeding (just two songs from 2022’s Twelve Carat Toothache were showcased and new songs are apparently being introduced from the forthcoming Austin LP on a night-by-night basis).
Whether accompanied by the string-laden 10-piece band or taking lone moments in the spotlight armed with an acoustic guitar, it seems as though Malone is continuing his creative march forward. It’s an artistic evolution happening on increasingly bigger stages to boot.
And with that growth it seems he’s hellbent on sharing the love. “Keep living your dreams, keep not giving a shit and keep doing you because no one can ever fucking stop you,” he told the Ohioan audience as reported by the Cincinnati Enquirer.
“It doesn’t matter whether you wanna be an archeologist or a fucking professional beer pong player because no one can fucking stop you.”
After the US dates, the If Y’all Weren’t Here, I’d Be Crying tour moves on to Chile, Brazil, Mexico, Thailand, Philippines, Taiwan, South Korea, China and Japan.
Having already visited Australia and New Zealand supporting the Red Hot Chili Peppers back in February, Post Malone returns for his headline Australian tour in November. Just before arriving Down Under, he’ll perform a massive show in Auckland, New Zealand (see full dates below).
Post Malone’s Austin is out July 28th (pre-save/pre-order here).
Post Malone 2023 Australia & New Zealand Tour
Ticket information available via livenation.com.au or livenation.co.nz
Tuesday, November 21st
The Outer Fields at Western Springs, Auckland, NZ
Thursday, November 23rd
Brisbane Showgrounds, Brisbane, QLD
Wednesday, November 29th
The Domain, Sydney, NSW
Thursday, November 30th
Melbourne Showgrounds, Melbourne, VIC
