What is the artist-to-fan relationship like in a venue of 250 people? It, likely, consists of the artist seeing 20 people they shared inside jokes with on social media within the last 24 hours in the first two rows, with more fans of a similar online connectedness scattered around the room.

What’s that relationship like in a room of 700? Well, now there might be a balcony for the artist to have to look up at. A few unfamiliar faces. But, when half of the room sticks around after the show to chat and take some pictures, the artist may still get to everyone.

What happens when you’re Chelsea Cutler and you’ve built your career off being THAT kind of artist, because that’s how you were developed to be by artists you learned the ropes from, and you sell out all 6,000 seats of Radio City Music Hall in New York City? You try your best to marry the intimacy of the shows from the days when you were on the come up with the sheer size of the room you are now successful enough to play and are now tasked with controlling.

This past Friday, Chelsea Cutler brought her The Beauty In Everything Tour, for which she is promoting new record Stellaria, to the iconic venue on 6th Ave and 50th Street. While not originally from New York, she lives there now, making it, by all accounts, a hometown show. Her mom, just days removed from hip surgery, was present. Among other established names in music in attendance, Ben Platt, accompanied by his fiancé Noah Galvin, played the role of spectator in a room he himself sold out just a few years ago. It was, undoubtedly, a big night.

Opening act Yoke Lore, along with drummer Rafe Bouchard, took the stage promptly at 8 p.m. to a largely empty room. Lore, a born and bred NYC local, quickly establishes himself as this vocally eccentric Mumford and Sons-like figure, thrashing around stage left with his banjo on tracks like “Chin Up” and “Seeds.” While more of the crowd began to file in during this time, most… not all, but most, sat on their hands for the first half of his set.

Songs like “Hallucinate” and “Beige,” the latter the highlight of the set clearly extended for live purposes, were the turning point. The energy was building. All levels began to fill up, and, one by one, audience members rose to their feet. By this point, he had seemingly won the crowd over.

After Lore’s exit, Cutler’s preshow playlist included “I Like That” by Bazzi, “Mr. Brightside” by The Killers, and, in a true moment of generational levity, “So Yesterday” by Hilary Duff. She took the stage at 9:02 p.m.

Understandably, she got off to a rocky start, vocally stumbling through Stellaria opening track “Something More” as she tried to take everything in. She pulled it together but continued to adorably geek out throughout the show. As did her drummer, Michael Mason, who was jumping out of his skin and playing as if his life depended on it. The “geeking out” factor resulted in a less than polished visual element in some cases, but she fully embraced the moment, declaring that, going forward, she no longer cared about numbers… the noise of social media. That THIS is what is real to her.

A small pit of maybe 150 people, likely the loyalists facing the last bit of the “she’s not just OURS anymore” crisis they could muster, surrounded the foot of the stage, with others trading spots side stage throughout the show. Cutler catered to the pit frequently enough, but spent ample time on either end of the stage and, with security in toe, later walked up one of the center aisles during “nj.”

In what is a classic, go-to move, Cutler repeatedly challenged the crowd to sing louder… scream louder. Whether they did or didn’t, it likely wouldn’t have reached her in the way she wanted. Radio City is grand… a hall, of course, with world-renown acoustics. She knew this, having co-headlined the Stay Next To Me Tour with Quinn XCII there just a few years ago, but was simply going through the motions.

With that said, this crowd was still giving her what she needed. The energy was palpable for Stellaria standout/banger, “I Don’t Feel Alive,” as well as staples such as “Cold Showers,” “Sad Tonight,” and “Your Shirt.” Even non-singles from Stellaria like “Hunting Season,” “You Don’t Think About Me at All,” and “Loved By You” received a surprising amount of love. Vocal highlights included Stellaria cuts “If Not Yours,” “Men On The Moon,” particularly the bridge, and “You Don’t Think...” She was also noticeably strong on the stripped back “Hotel June” and “you were good to me,” the latter a Jeremy Zucker duet from their brent project, performed solo.

She wrapped the main set with “Your Shirt” and “the lifeboat’s empty!,” unmistakable classic bangers of her catalog, and exited the stage. After a rousing ovation, she returned for a solo acoustic rendition of “Your Bones” and a solo “This Is How You Fall In Love,” another brent-era classic with Jeremy Zucker. With iPhone lights illuminating the room, “Your Bones” certified itself as the new Cutler standard. Not even six months old, the song is magnetic. An intimate, no frills anthem for love in its purest form that has taken on a life of its own.

Though her next album will be telling of what happens going forward, “Your Bones” may very well be the spark that leads her to Madison Square Garden. With modern acts such as AJR, Noah Kahan, and Melanie Martinez getting their first crack at the World’s Most Famous Arena, it is certainly plausible, and would be a well-deserved prize for an artist who, while she refuses to admit it, influenced many that have come after her.

Review by: Noah Wade

Photos by: Courtesy of Republic Records

Like what you read? Follow our social media and playlist for the latest in independent music:

Chelsea Cutler Throws Down at Historic Radio City Music Hall