Ross and Rocky Lynch captured millions of fans hearts debuting as The Driver Era in 2018 when the duo announced their solo project. Formerly known as R5 with siblings Rydel and Riker (bassist for TDE), the duo presents themselves as alt-pop kings with party hits such as “Preacher Man” and “Heart Of Mine”, along with romanticized tracks like “A Kiss” and latest single “Malibu.” Soaring with fans worldwide since 2019, The Driver Era provides perfect nostalgia through upbeat melodies and diverse lyricism.
The scene began outside The Factory in Chesterfield, Missouri in the early morning when fans were ecstatic to line up. When the doors opened at 6:30, the line stretched through the parking lot, stretching nearly to The Factory sign. A sea of all ages (mostly 14-28) were decked out in TDE and R5 shirts, and pink aesthetic. The GA floor filled up quickly as fans poured in with excitement. The bar even had a drink named after the band’s song “Afterglow” that lit up different colors as fans geared up for the main attraction.
THE DRIVER ERA SETLIST - St. Louis - 09/02/2022
Keep Moving Forward
Natural
Flashdrive
Malibu
On My Own
Heart Of Mine
Preacher Man
Low
When You Need A Man
Bronco
San Francisco
Places
Giveuwhatuwant
Rock With You (Michael Jackson cover)
Heaven Angel
Scared Of Heights
Nobody Knows
Cali Girls (R5 Cover)
Feel You Now
ENCORE:
Fade
Afterglow
A Kiss
Kicking off their set with “Keep Moving Forward”, the energy escalated as the duo took the stage along with brother Riker, killer keyboardist Garrison Jones, thundering drummer Dave Briggs, and last but never ever least, little brother Ryland running the show in the sound booth. Furthering into their set, when “Malibu” hit the crowd, the party really began. The song provides perfect nostalgic for summer with calming acoustics and funky beats to get the crowd movin’ and groovin’. A conga train danced through the crowd as soon as “Preacher Man” was blasting as fans screamed lyrics back to Ross, who at this point in the show was thriving with ethereal vocals. Travelling straight into “Low” with its upbeat melodies and energetic beats encouraged fans to dance and free themselves from the world.
Dropping the energetic vibe to gradually slow things down, soft and soothing acoustics mixed with alluring vocals pulled you into “San Francisco” with fans swaying side to side. As Ross’ vocals soared to new heights, fans fell instantly in love and shrieks were to be heard throughout the entire venue. “Giveuwhatuwant” encouraged the party to heat back up as fans danced the night away. R5/The Driver Era is always known for their amazing covers (“Let’s Go Crazy” by Prince, “Sex On Fire” by Kings Of Leon, etc.) and thrilled the crowd with their latest cover, “Rock With You” by Michael Jackson. Ross showed off his infamous dance moves during the cover and made the ladies scream as he captured hearts even more.
“Nobody Knows” heated things up with its motivating melodies as Ross encouraged fans to jump and dance during its all-too-catchy chorus. Captivating fans with eclectic songs throughout the night, the crowd was asked “Do we have any R5 fans in the house? Has anyone ever seen R5? Well, thanks for sticking around. Here’s an R5 song.” Familiar guitar strums played as fans were quick to figure out which song it was as “Cali Girls” was being performed. With the entire crowd on their feet and dancing, including Ryland in the sound booth, the band consumed the crowd with 2013’s R5 nostalgia. TDE’s openers Almost Monday and Summer Salt decided to pull a prank during the track and sprayed silly string all over the crowd and the band. Ross and Rocky were happily surprised when they realized what was happening and had the biggest smile on their faces due to the situation. “Feel You Now” was the final track before the encore and blared through the crowd as fans knew the night would be over soon… But not too soon.
The venue was dark, yet fans felt elated as they knew Ross and Rocky still had more to provide, especially since it was the last Summer Tour show in the US. The final three tracks were “Fade”, “Afterglow” and “A Kiss”, as the night ended more perfectly than expected. Combining their passion for music with maintaining a tight squeeze between siblings and friends, The Driver Era symbolizes what it’s like to be independent and possess creative freedom.
THE DRIVER ERA
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