Courtney GI’m back at the Coca-Cola Roxy, this time to see Daniel Caesar. The Coca-Cola Roxy is located in the Battery which is right next to Truist Park where the Atlanta Braves play.
That night, there was also a Braves game in town so I didn’t get the opportunity to buy parking for the concert through Ticketmaster like last time. Instead, I parked at my job – which isn’t too far from the area – and took a rideshare over. I got to experience a Tesla for the first time which I’m not gonna lie, it was nice.
I realized after the fact I could’ve purchased parking for the game itself since the venue doesn’t have its own parking. It utilizes the Battery parking decks, so I’ll know that for next time in case parking at my job is too complicated.
Getting back to my car after the concert was a concern for me (overthinking it a little) but let’s get into that later.
Arriving at the Coca-Cola Roxy
When my driver dropped me off I soon realized I should’ve went down the sidewalk towards the front of the venue. The line was so long it wrapped all the way around pretty close to where I was dropped off. If I didn’t have work that day I would’ve gotten here at 4PM like I did for the Ari Lennox concert.
That being said, I only waited for 40 minutes. I arrived 20 minutes before the doors opened so technically I was only waiting in line for 20 minutes after that.
I got a seated ticket since I nearly fainted and lost my spot at the Ari Lennox concert. That’s the only reason why I wasn’t too pressed about the line. If I was doing GA/standing only again I would’ve been dejected.
I also got merch before the show instead of after so I wouldn’t be waiting for nearly an hour after the show (especially because I had to go into the office next day instead of working from home). It was much quicker doing it this way. I got the “Never Enough” shirt with the shadow image ($45) and a vinyl for Getaway from Orion Sun ($30) who was the opener. I don’t even see the vinyl for Getaway on her website so I’m really glad I got it at the concert. The merch didn’t come with a bag to put it in which was inconvenient but I’m glad I had a seat to put them in. I felt bad for the folks standing with their merch.
My Seat
I was on the second floor of the venue in section 202 row B and was pretty close to the stage. It’s a great view as long as no one stands up. I wish I had the VIP table seats that were right at the front of the balcony but I don’t have VIP money, okay?
The non-VIP seats are typical stadium seats. I think I’m at an age where I prefer the seated concerts so I’ll definitely be getting a seated ticket if I go to another concert in Coca-Cola Roxy.
There’s a bar on each floor and I didn’t realize that the venue served food until I saw people going back and forth to their seats with to-go boxes.
All right, enough about the venue, now let’s get into the concert.
Orion Sun
Orion Sun was Daniel’s opener for the Atlanta show. I’d looked up her music after finding that out and I liked what I heard. The music had a chill vibe.
I appreciated that she started at 8PM on the dot. While some of the songs I’d heard prior were chill, Orion Sun had such great energy performing her set. The way she interacted with the crowd was honestly amazing. She encourage audience members to toss bracelets they made for her up on the stage and made sure people felt included. Well, people in GA area. I think the down side about being in the balcony was that we didn’t get much direct acknowledgement from either performer.
With Orion Sun’s set, I could feel the bass in reverberate in my chest so she and the band playing with her – Luke the drummer, Justin the keyboardist, and John the guitarist – were really into it.
She told us how we were her second show so far on the tour and she was having a great time.
This was her set list:
- pressure
- Coffee For Dinner
- concrete
- Smooth
- Space Jam – An Odyssey
- The Only Exception (Paramore cover)
- Valentine
- dirty dancer
- without you (interlude)
While I loved the whole set, I think my two favorites were “Smooth” and “concrete”. “The Only Exception” cover was unexpected and absolutely loved it. The crowd was really hyped when Orion Sun performed “dirty dancer” I noticed.
As she wrapped her set, she jumped in to the crowd and high-fived everyone in the front. I think she knew someone specifically in the front because she stopped to talk and hug them.
Orion Sun was a great opener. I’d definitely go to a concert just for her.
Daniel Caesar
After about a 30-minute break, it was time for the main event: Daniel Caesar!
There were three screens set up: one on the right and left side of the stage and one in the center. Of course the one our side we couldn’t see.
The entire room was dark except the center screen. It was playing a video feed that was assumed to be from backstage. When Daniel Caesar and the band entered, the crowd went wild (myself included).
It was still dark so we couldn’t see him well but we heard is falsetto as he started singing “Ocho Rios”. We all sung along passionately as he lifted up the mic towards the audience.
The lights on the stage came up but he was behind a curtain so it was still a little hard to see him. That being said, we were all vibing together singing every song.
The Set List
Here was his set list for our show:
- Ocho Rios
- Let Me Go
- Disillusioned
- Toronto 2014
- CYANIDE
- Loose
- Violet
- Do You Like Me?
- ENTROPY
- OPEN UP
- Japanese Denim
- Best Part
- Please Do Not Lean
- Pain is Inevitable
- Shot My Baby
- Superpowers
- Birds of Paradise (acoustic)
- Who Hurt You? (acoustic)
- Cool
- Get You
- Always
Encore: Streetcar (acoustic) (Kanye West cover of “Streetlights”)
“Disillusioned” is one of my favorites from his new album Never Enough so I was dancing and jamming. “CYANIDE” really got everyone in the room hyped, especially Daniel. This was Daniel’s 7th show on the U.S. & Canada leg of the tour and after her performed this song, he said it was the best one so far.
He performed a few of my favorites from his older albums/songs also like “Violet”, “Best Part”, and “Japanese Denim”. There was little pause during Japanese Denim because he thought someone in the crowd needed help but it was a false alarm.
Tip: I’m starting to learn that if someone flashes their light at a concert it usually means someone needs medical attention. When artist see that from the stage they want to make sure whoever needs assistance can get it as soon as possible. This happened at another concert I went to in Chicago last year.
Once it was back on track, we sang together, the screens showing different feeds of people single along all over the room. The cameramen even came up to the balconies.
During “Shot My Baby” we were graced with an amazing guitar solo from his guitarist. This song was honestly great live. I can’t quite describe it but it was definitely something you have to hear live. The guitar solo just elevated it.
The Acoustic Session
Daniel Caesar changed it up a bit and grabbed an acoustic guitar. Other cities seemed to get “Indecision” but I don’t remember him playing that song during our concert. However, he did play “Birds of Paradise” for us which he said he hadn’t played in 5 years.
Afterwards, the crowd chanted for him to do “Who Hurt You?” and he played it! The song literally starts with, “Take me back to Georgia, back to Atlanta,” so of course we in Atlanta want him to sing the song. He’d said he’d originally took it off the set but he played an acoustic version for us!
Wrapping Up the Show
After the acoustic part of the set, he continued on with his band. “Cool” was honestly a beautiful moment to experience as everyone turned on their phone lights and illuminated the room with a glow.
“Get You” got everyone hyped as we all screamed along to the lyrics of one of the songs that really grew his popularity starting out.
He finished with “Always”. I know that’s it’s popular from his new album but to be honest, it’s not my favorite.
We cheered for him to sing “one more song” as he left the stage. Some people started to leave which I scolded saying, “There’s always an encore.” Shortly after, the center screen came back on. It was showing him backstage again. While Daniel didn’t come back on the stage, he performed “Streetcar” on his acoustic guitar for us via the video feed. With that, the show was over.
I didn’t feel the concert withdrawal as bad as I expected. I actually felt satisfied. Now, do I wish he performed a few more song from Freudian (which is still my favorite album from him)? Yeah, but I still got to hear a lot of my favorites from all his other albums. It was such a great show!
Getting Back to My Car
Getting a rideshare back to my car wasn’t too worrisome but I did have one cancel on me. It took me a few minutes to finally get a new one. The fact that there was a game that night may have been in my favor as far as safety and how many people were still out and about. My ride back was 2x more than the ride there. The same thing happened with Beyoncé but my job would’ve been way too far to walk and I didn’t have anyone with me this time so I had no choice but to take a rideshare. Safety first!
Overall, the night was pretty perfect. I’m so glad I went to see and experience Daniel Caesar live as well as Orion Sun! One of the girls next me told me they saw Daniel in the Fox Theater back in 2019 which a much bigger venue; usually used for Broadway tour shows but I think I (and the girls next to me) preferred seeing him at a smaller more intimate venue. This is why I love going to Coca-Cola Roxy for concerts!
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