TALK Celebrates A Debut Album With A Sold Out D.C. Show 

The Five Time Juno Awards Nominee Visits D.C. 

Date: March 7th, 2024

Venue: The Atlantis

Washington, DC

TALK

Chances are if you’ve been on social media in the past couple of years or more recently mainstream rock/alternative radio, you’ve probably heard the talents of Canadian artist Nick Durocher, better known by his stage name TALK. While his musical career is just in the beginning stages, he’s already proving his talent, personality, and connection to his fans are extremely well-received across the globe. But perhaps his biggest validating moment, so far, in the music industry is the fact that for 2024’s Juno Awards, he’s nominated not for one, not two but FIVE Juno Awards. Those include Single of the Year, Album of the Year, Breakthrough Artist of the Year, Songwriter of the Year, and Alternative Album of the Year. So make sure to follow the Juno Awards on March 26th to find out which awards TALK takes home. 

But before the Juno Awards comes the current tour. After opening for such acts as Young the Giant and Shania Twain in the last year it was time to headline. TALK celebrated his debut album with a tour named after it that would take him and his band across the United States and soon back to his home country of Canada. His debut album titled “Lord of the Flies & Birds & Bees” lends itself to be the theme and majority of the setlist on this tour, as it should but not to be forgotten is his 2021 EP “Talk to Me” which also weaves itself into the live shows each night. 

It’s always incredible when you go to a concert and the artist not only sounds amazing live but creates such a genuinely fun environment for those in attendance and that’s exactly what happened in D.C. From hilarious moments that included conversations of the rats in D.C. (not the political ones) and the cherry blossoms to educational entertainment in the form of Nick (TALK) playing a game with the audience that involved randomly shouting a state capital or famous city in which he would then instantly name what state it was within. It was a true blast. Plus we all got to witness what has now become his signature show moment, the “croc kick” which showcases TALK’s ability to send his crocs flying through the audience. In this case, reached the back and the balcony area between both Crocs before they made their safe return to the stage. Shortly after he proved his dedication to making people happy as a younger fan in the front row yelled “Can I have your Crocs?!” and he swiftly and kindly obliged. 

As the show continued it was pure fun and joy the entire time as we hopped on a “Train” and they took us to the “Wasteland” before handing it over to the audience as they shifted into request mode in the form of iconic classic rock songs, completely improvised. This evening the crowd requested songs such as “Iron Man”, “Smells Like Teen Spirit” and “American Idiot”. All of which tied nicely into a moment towards the end of the set when they went full Guitar Hero mode and played “Through the Fire and Flames” by DragonForce.

Before the night came to an end though he took a moment to recognize some important people to him as an artist but also in his personal life. The first was a fan he’d met at numerous shows but more importantly at Maryland’s Merriweather Pavilion as he performed on stage and noticed a fan by the name of Chris making his way through the pit with a walker held above his head still supporting his favorite artist. It turns out Chris was in an accident shortly before that show but that didn’t stop him from showing up and supporting TALK. With this dedication on the night of the show in D.C. TALK welcomed Chris to the stage as they sang “Hollywood” together. Creating a truly iconic moment. The other person TALK recognized was also the inspiration behind one of his newer songs, “Afraid of the Dark”, and TALK’s truly biggest fan, his grandmother. He noted that at merch fans could buy a bracelet handmade by his 90-year-old grandmother who spends her days at a nursing home creating them but is also able to flash all her money to her older friends as each bracelet sold means a bit of money in her pocket. 

To close out the show he welcomed the fans from D.C. who showed up in full and sold out The Atlantis to accompany him on a journey as we all decided to “Run Away to Mars”. His most famous song was brought to life in the most amazing way and a perfect end to a wildly entertaining, incredible, and memorable show. 

Zinadelphia

Opening the show this evening was Philadelphia native and up-and-coming artist to watch Zinadelphia. Her music career is in the early stages but it was instantly clear hearing her for the first time that at just 23 years of age, she has talent and vocals well beyond her years. 

She kicked off her set with songs from her latest EP “Lucky” which included songs such as “Cosmos” and “Love Language”. But with any opening act, you always hope that you leave wanting to hear their songs again, with Zinadelphia I felt this with every song played that evening but especially the instant hit sounds of “Waterfall.” 

Before the evening wrapped she graced us with a goosebump giving cover of Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive”, done at a slower tempo allowing the soul and vocals to shine through in full force. While Zinadelphia was an opening act, it was clear D.C. was instant fans as they cheered loudly after every song, leading her to note that D.C. had claimed the title of her “favorite crowd”.

See the Full Gallery of the Night Here!

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