Electric Intimacy and Post-Lockdown Performing
Chelsea Cutler at the Royal Oak Music Theatre
Twenty-four has never sounded so dreamy—this was my initial impression of the music of Chelsea Cutler, an artist who invites us to get lost in our fantasies, to look forward to that forever with the person we love that we’ve never before had the courage to imagine. Cutler, the 24-year-old musician from Westport, Connecticut, left college during her junior year to pursue music full-time. From writing songs in her bedroom to touring her sophomore album When I Close My Eyes, Chelsea Cutler has come a long way from the artist she broke onto the scene as in 2017
On Wednesday, April 6th, the Royal Oak Music Theater welcomed the singer onto its stage, hundreds of fans filing in behind her anticipating the performance. The historic theater’s high ceiling and sweeping proscenium arch set the perfect backdrop for the show, an elegant fusion of old and new, as Cutler was halfway through her largest tour to date; her first since garnering millions of new listeners during quarantine when several of her songs gained viral attention on TikTok.
Photo by Taylor Pacis
Chelsea Cutler’s career quickly took off after several of her early singles, including “Your Shirt” and “Sixteen,” amassed numerous streams in 2017, leading to many collaborations that same year with artists like Louis the Child, Ayokay, and Kidswaste. By the end of 2017, Cutler signed her first record deal with Ultra Records and released her first EP, Snow In October, before being signed to Universal-owned Republic Records in 2019 and releasing her debut studio album, How To Be Human, in January of 2020. Characteristically indie-pop, Cutler’s sound features acoustic notes accompanied by lo-fi beats and a uniquely soulful voice, creating a medley of youthful melancholy and the fierce determination to make something of her sadness. While her earlier lyrics tackle her relatable struggles with depression and anxiety, Cutler’s most recent album, When I Close My Eyes, celebrates personal growth, love, and her ability to overcome these previous obstacles, expressing gratitude for the people that helped her through them, including her girlfriend of three years. Chelsea Cutler’s music is nothing if not a raw and honest depiction of humanity.
Wearing slick, black leather pants and her staple oversized jersey, Cutler took the stage on Wednesday night, a deeply powerful presence. Taylor Pacis, one of our own SHEI photographers, captured the show on camera and shared a few of her favorite moments of the night with me. Pacis recounted the very end of the show when Cutler gave out signed jerseys to fans who were notably present during the performance, “the people who were really engaged with the concert and her music, who were having a genuinely great time, laughing, dancing, not really caring who was around to see them…who were truly connecting with the music, her band, and her vibe.”
This connection between musicians and their listeners is incredibly important to Cutler, as she shared in a viral post on Twitter that resonated with several other artists online. “Scary to post this but would rather be honest as I imagine this is something a lot of people might feel lately…” Cutler prefaced. “The music industry is confusing to navigate as an artist right now. It seems like so much music is being released and consumed so rapidly. Individual songs are catching on social media, but it feels like there is such a massive disconnect between listeners and artists.” In her post, Cutler points out the ways that the landscape of the music industry is constantly shifting to accommodate for listeners’ shorter attention spans and to push the type of content that is successful on social media: “I don’t feel like a content creator, I feel like a musician and performer.” While Cutler expressed her distaste for the ways social media tends to further disconnect artists and listeners, we could hope that her return to live performances might help close this gap.
And at her Royal Oak show, the energy between Cutler and the crowd was electric. As a performer, Picas described, Cutler created “an intimate environment” on stage, heavily engaging with her band, most notably her drummer, fluidly moving between the guitar and piano throughout the night. As the energy of her set shifted, so did she, playfully jumping and dancing with the crowd during her more upbeat songs while also masterfully “mellowing out the crowd and having everybody be super intune with their emotions” when the time was right. Looking over her shoulder as she photographed, Picas noticed several audience members crying and hugging their loved ones while Cutler poured out her own emotions on stage. Not only were these fans’ individual connections to Cutler’s music important in this moment, Picas reflected, but their connections to the people around them at the concert were just as essential to their experience. “That emotion really added to the ambiance.” At any Chelsea Cutler performance you attend, she certainly promises emotion—bearing her heart on stage and inviting you to do the same.