I found out a few short weeks ago that Jamie Lynn Spears was going to be playing at Joe’s Bar in Chicago on Thursday, April 10th and was having Justin Adams as her opening act. I knew I had to be at this one and everything seemed to work out perfectly for me to be able to attend. So there I was as excited as ever and headed to Chi-town, an hour or so away from my hometown with my extra supportive and loving cousin (Thanks again Hol). I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t already familiar with Justin Adams, his captivating vocals, and charming personality. So happy to know him. I was beyond pumped to see him sing the songs that made me practically burn a hole through his EP from playing it too much. Once again, he’s just that good–and if you don’t know him, you may want to get to know him. If you don’t follow him on Twitter, you may want to do that as well: @justinadams51, heck…even check out his website at justinadamscountry.com. His EP is fantastic, and if you go on Youtube you may also find some great covers sung by him as well. I’ve said it before, and I will say it again…this guy is going to be HUGE.
The clock to the side of the stage was ticking closer and closer to the time for the concert to start, 4 minutes to show time. That felt like the longest 4 minutes of my life thus far. The lights went down, the announcer came out and shortly after that, the man I had been waiting to see had approached the mic. Justin had quite the set! One of them was a fan requested song, “Texas,” which really encompasses his talent and vocals. Also sung were some songs off of his EP, available HERE via Amazon and iTunes(GET IT!). One of my personal favorites off of the EP is a song about the best part about getting into an argument with your significant other, the kiss and make up part, and in the end “getting closer to what matters just by letting it all go, and holding on to one another.” The girls in the crowd went wild with the lyrics, “shut up and kiss me.” Who wouldn’t? The stage presence of this guy is incredible because he works the crowd, makes eye contact with them, and what radiates from his performance is the passion and drive to succeed in this music career. Incredible is an understatement! he’s got so much energy, so lively and exuberant. It is so amazing to stand and watch someone who genuinely feels these lyrics and portrays to the crowd the meaningfulness of each and every word of the song. He gave the crowd a sneak peek at a new song, and finished the set out with my personal favorite song off the EP, “Miss Me Whiskey.” I’m so in love with that song, if you haven’t heard it–give it a listen, you’ll put it on repeat in a heartbeat. You’ll thank me later. The best part was the ending of “Miss Me Whiskey,” where he really worked the side of the stage I was on. His set was astounding! I could have listened to him and his awesome band play all day–they have a unique on stage chemistry that just works. Please do me a favor, and check Justin Adams and his band out, his set was my favorite of the night.
I made my way to the back before Jamie Lynn Spears came on, the crowd kept filtering in as time went on and it got super packed in the place. Some of you may be familiar with Jamie Lynn’s sister, Britney Spears, or maybe familiar with seeing her playing the role of Zoey Brooks on Zoey 101 on the Disney channel back in the day. One things for sure, she may be Britney’s sister but she has a style all her own, from the hair and makeup, to the attire, but most importantly musically.Recently, Jamie Lynn was asked to be the social media correspondent for the 49th Annual ACM Awards which took place earlier this month, she did a fabulous job mainly because she has that welcoming, and genuine personality that draws people in. I’ll be honest, I had only heard, “How Could I Want More,” on country radio and liked it, but hadn’t really gotten the chance to check out more music of hers. This concert highlighted some other great songs such as, “Back To LA“, “All I Am Is Gone,” and a song that made Jamie Lynn break down into tears on stage, “When the Lights Go Out.” I think that was by far my favorite moment of her show, she really broke it down for everyone when she said she misses her husband and her baby girl. That’s the reality of a life on the road, sometimes you miss home a little too much, it gets you crazy emotional and stirred up inside but that’s when breakthrough occurs, the music is so powerful it helps you heal. Other songs she sang beautifully were, “Lift,” and “Find my Heart.” That’s the amazing thing about it all. I think that’s what Jamie Lynn brought to light with her show. Jamie Lynn did many covers throughout the show, “Bad Moon Rising,” by Creedence Clearwater Revival. Amongst other covers was, “Free As I’ll Ever Be,” by Zac Brown Band. I’d have rather heard her do more of her own songs acoustically than the covers that she did because there isn’t any denying that she doesn’t have talent.
After the show was over both Justin Adams and Jamie Lynn were in the back by the merchandise and were signing autographs and mingling with fans. I had to work the next morning and couldn’t wait in the long line to meet Jamie Lynn, but I did have the pleasure of chatting it up with Justin Adams. What a handsome, and genuine guy who truly appreciates the honest opinion of others, he makes them feel welcome and gives a heartfelt thanks to them. No need to say anymore, he was the highlight of the show, and those moments were the highlight of the evening. I cannot wait until I am able to attend another show hopefully in the near future–maybe in Wisconsin next time?? We will see, all I know is it will be another happy day. Thanks for everything, what a blast!
(Photo Credit: Facebook/Justin Adams)
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