A Night With Trousdale: Live at Lincoln Hall Chicago, IL

Looking for a sick trio of women slinging tight harmonies, delivering power vocals and serving electric energy on stage? Look no further – Trousdale brings all of that with ease through captivating performances each time they take the stage!

The band is comprised of three wonderful souls based in California: Quinn D’Andrea, Georgia Greene and Lauren Jones. They met at college in a music program and were fast friends. Trousdale initially started as a live band, writing songs and playing together in venues. They took a couple years off to regroup but came back together, stronger than ever with comeback track “Happy Anymore.” Over the pandemic, the trio were unstoppable – writing, recording and releasing singles and EPs back-to-back. I discovered them last summer when the powerful, gut-wrenching anthem “Wouldn’t Come Back” made its way to a Spotify playlist I stumbled upon.

In 2023, Trousdale released their debut album “Out Of My Mind” – a self-produced album that speaks to the innate talent, remarkable artistry and determination these three possess. The album is genre bending – mixing country, pop and a splash of funk. Truly my favorite music discovery of this year.

Trousdale kicked off their Out Of My Mind tour at the start of February in San Diego and rounded it out March 2^nd at the iconic El Rey Theatre in their hometown of Los Angeles. I was lucky enough to be able to travel to catch that show and let me tell you – it was one of the best concerts I have ever attended.

Continuing the momentum, Trousdale embarked on a second leg of tour – Still Out Of My Mind – where they started at Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Manchester, TN, played three shows opening for the Teskey Brothers, hopped in at Green River Music Festival in Greenfield, MA, and played five more shows in the Northeast and Midwest.

Now, that brings us to June 29^th at Lincoln Hall in Chicago, IL – last show of the second run. While it was a smaller venue, the vibes were absolutely immaculate. Trousdale and their fans have a positive, gracious, fun-loving aura around them that is palpable. The energy at these shows is something I’ve never experienced before.

My friends and I arrived early enough to get to good spots as close to the stage as possible. This venue does not have a barricade, so you are quite literally right up close and personal with the artists. The second doors were opened, the crowd rushed to the stage and filled the room with happy chatter until the band’s opening act, Rhett Madison, took the stage. Trousdale fans are always courteous and respectful of opening acts. I witnessed this in Dallas and LA where Abbey Cone performed half-hour sets to gracious and welcoming audiences before Trousdale.

At 9:15, lights were dimmed once again, and Lincoln Hall filled with massive cheers and applause in anticipation for the band to take the stage. First out were Connor Couron on the drums and R.C. Rossell on lead guitar. Quinn on keys, Georgia in the center with a tambourine and Lauren on guitar followed quickly after and opened their set with powerhouse lead track from OOMM – Bad Blood (not to be confused with another catchy song by the same name). The girls were each dressed in their signature colors: Quinn in green, Georgia in pink and Lauren in blue. It is important to note they did not purposefully intend to dress like the Power Puff Girls, but alas here we are, and it just works for them.

Song two of the set was a fan favorite – Point Your Finger – which had a new music video released less than two weeks prior. I dare you to listen to this song and not snap and clap along to it. With no break in-between, Trousdale spun into a wholesome song about happiness called This Is It. During the bridge, Quinn stepped around her keyboard to interact with the crowd, having them echo what she sung – the crowd understood the assignment as I could hear crystal clear harmonizing!

Following the first three songs, the band took a small pause to speak with the crowd and offer a bit of insight into their journey as a band of ten years. This led to a few more favorites: “Happy Anymore”, “Sometimes” and “Can’t Get Your Love Back”, keeping that same lively energy through the lot.

Almost halfway through the set, Trousdale plays a love song titled “Movie Star” where they pick one lucky fan to come up on stage to be serenaded while sitting on a tall chair in the center of the stage. The group chose a lovely girl standing right next to me and I couldn’t be happier for her – girly was shook!

Next up, Trousdale played upbeat “Love” and followed up with acoustic “Smart Iowa”, a gorgeous story-telling song about an actress who left it all behind for a simpler life. Fan-favorite “If I’m Honest”, which just had a live version from LA release on streaming, was next and the crowd went crazy! So much energy and dancing were involved. “Placebo”, my personal favorite (at the moment), followed and the beautifully organic harmonies took over the room.

Up next was one of the best moments of the Trousdale setlist. I told a few others before the show to brace themselves for the sickest transition they’d ever witnessed. The band played Always, Joni – essentially a love song/tribute to Joni Mitchell – a slower, acoustic based song. However, at the last note of the song, an immediate transition into a cover of “The Chain” by Fleetwood Mac came and the crowd was in awe with gasps and cheers. The lights changed from blue and purple to red as the demeanor on stage flipped. Lauren and Georgia traded places and the group belted some of the best vocals of the night.

After “The Chain”, the crowd flooded the room with cheers and applause. Once it started to die down (these fans were very hyped all night), Trousdale sang “Go There”, a sweet yet upbeat banger about consent and wanting to take the next step with a crush. Afterwards, Quinn spoke with the audience, explaining they sang that song at an earlier gig that day and she over-shot a quick but high note, resulting in a squeak. The band continued to banter for a moment about that until it was time for a mood-switch.

Quinn, Georgia and Lauren all met center-stage while Lauren opened with “This is an ‘emosh’ (emotional) one.” She went on to speak about her personal struggles with feelings of not being enough and feeling down, like happiness was unachievable. The trio played “If You’re Hurting”, the beautifully written ballad/love note to the fans, acoustically. While looking around, I noticed multiple fans quietly crying while singing along – others in full blown tears rolling down their faces – hands on hearts, absolutely in touch with each lyric sung.

Switching gears after another long round of applause, Georgia said to the crowd “Thank you for feeling your feelings with us… whatever you’re feeling, feel it all. It’s the only way through.” Trousdale played their uplifting, anthemic “Any Day Now.”

With the show coming to an end, the band switched gears again to perform the aforementioned “Wouldn’t Come Back” – a fan favorite ballad about the end of a relationship, realizing if you keep at it, you’ll lose yourself and never return to who you used to be. After this song comes the silly, goofy portion of the show where Trousdale pretends that was the final song and exits the stage. Although, this time, Quinn signaled the audience, letting them know they’re just joking and will return. As the band left the stage, the crowd continued cheering, whistling and clapping loudly for 20 straight seconds before the band made their way back to their places on stage.

The group thanked the fans for all the love they were shown throughout the evening. Trousdale surprised the audience by playing a gorgeous new, unreleased song full of stunning, country-esque vocals – but only after asking the crowd if they had the energy for two more songs. Immediately following the performance, Quinn and Georgia both took shots on stage before the last song.

Rounding out the show, Trousdale bantered for a few minutes before performing the triumphant, album-ender and title track “Out Of My Mind” completely bringing the house down. The song featured incredible adlibs and a killer guitar solo from R.C. Truly one of the greatest performances I have ever witnessed.

Bet you thought I was done? Nope! These are some seriously stand-up gals. Each night after their set, Trousdale will come out to meet with their fans that know what’s up and stick around. I’d brought my friend up with me to meet them. After her introduction, she brought their attention to me, and they were just lovely. Quinn noted looking deeply in my eyes while I was center stage taking photographs. Georgia remembered I was at the El Rey show and stated one of the images I’d sent her after that is now her mom’s screensaver (what??). Honestly some of the kindest three women you’ll ever meet.

Seriously, you don’t want to sleep on this band. They are sincere, humble, and have the most infectious, positive energy both in themselves and their music. Check out their debut album “Out Of My Mind” and keep an eye out for their sophomore album then catch them on the road on their next tour!

For more info about Trousdale, check out the links below!
Official Website | Instagram | TikTok | Youtube | Spotify