What makes a good concert is a question Kelly Alexander answers with a specific recent example. The show felt, she says, like being taken to church. Nothing about that had to do with the lighting cues.

The artist was genuinely present, talked to the crowd, chose an intimate venue over a larger arena, and made everyone feel connected. Alexander calls the current alternative a cookie cutter mentality and argues that is exactly why certain tours are being cancelled before they begin. Zayn Malik is her example of an artist whose team overshot the room.

COVID changed the live music habit for younger fans, Alexander says. They spent years falling in love with artists online and never built the urgency to see them live. The artists who maintain mystique by going away for a while, she says, are the ones who still fill rooms when they return.

Topics: what makes a good concert, concert connection, cookie cutter tours, Zayn Malik cancelled, COVID concert culture

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Originally aired on2026-05-12