PARIS JACKSON LIVE AT MERCURY LOUNGE, NEW YORK CITY, JUNE 22, 2022: CONCERT REVIEW

A tiny underground showcase where Paris Jackson stepped beyond her famous name and proved her own songwriting power

(Updated from an article originally posted on tripmuze.com on February 9, 2023)

Paris Jackson held a rare concert at a tiny music venue called Mercury Lounge in New York City’s Lower East Side, a day after her TV live performances at “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon”. The purpose was obvious. Upon visiting from the West Coast for the popular talk show, let’s do one more promotional concert in New York City’s underground scene. Even if many people might not know her music, they know who Paris Jackson is. Michael Jackson’s daughter. The tickets were sold out within 20 minutes after announcing her concert, but guess when Paris Jackson announced her concert on her Instagram. Only a week in advance. She had the power to make her fans crazy.

I assumed Paris’ concert would be either grunge/indie rock-influenced like her new song “lighthouse”, the song she played on Jimmy Fallon, or folk-rock themed as her only album, wilted. They were the odd music styles she had expressed since her debut in 2020, but that was the sign she wouldn’t stick with only one genre like the quiet folk-rock songs at the beginning of her career. The result: the concert was mainly her new grunge/punk rock music with a few acoustic songs in the middle of the show. And none of the 11 songs were from wilted album. So it was clear that that was a promotional concert of Paris’s new start, not her past.

The reason I went to Paris Jackson’s concert was that I loved wilted album. That was one of the best albums in 2020, even though I didn’t have a review. Curiosity led to the album only because of her born-gifted status as Michael Jackson’s daughter. The return was a silent big blow to my curiosity. That was a prejudiced adjustment. Her impressive songwriting skills, full of beautiful acoustic melodies, were completely on the opposite side of her father, explained that she didn’t need fame as the daughter of the King of Pop. It was acoustic, met Enya. Paris’s voice over the fragile acoustic melodies kept buffing inside of my mind and had enough purity to flourish the middle-aged man’s stubborn heart. That was stripped soul music. No need for mechanical beats, big production, dancers, or moonwalk like her father. Another impression was that Paris chose endangered music. Folk rock is not uncommon, but it’s another type of indie music nowadays.

Paris Jackson opted to play the different side of indie rock on the underground stage, not the debut album. Roughness, spontaneity, punkish, and rock simplicity were probably what she wanted to express for her underground rock show at the mecca of the NYC underground music scene. That was like the height of the ’90s garage rock gig.

Much of her new music was like Soundgarden with some glam rock flavors. Especially heavy, low-lying guitar grooves were similar to Soundgarden. The difference was that Paris Jackson was more melodious…and well, lighter. It was obvious she didn’t have much experience with her new songs and style. She frequently looked at the lyrics during the show, sometimes the entire song. Though it could be considered a new style and music had no rule as she said during the show, for the sake of her professionalism, I think she still should better memorize the lyrics. And her voice was small and weak during most of the “grunge” rock/punk rock songs. Her voice was more shining and washing souls during the solo acoustic performance.

But Paris Jackson’s NYC concert didn’t fail at all. The major reason was that she succeeded in proving her outstanding songwriting skills, whether grunge or acoustic.

I couldn’t compare which side was better. Although most of the songs were for the first time to listen to, all songs had a bunch of impressive, catchy melodies and were enjoyable. “lighthouse” was a good example. Full of stirring grunge-pop melodies throughout the song. The instant appeal of unknown songs was a talent. I was confident that her next album would be tight again.

And acoustic songs. They were still Paris Jackson’s significant side, no matter what type of music she wanted to play. She sang 3 acoustic songs with only her woody brown acoustic guitar. Each of her beautiful breaths over dark sentimental melodies took her fans’ breaths away. Her voice was more emotional and appeared to be grunge rock. No dullness, no boredom in between the rock performances. Her acoustic performance strongly caught the audience’s ears and made the audience fall in love with her musical talent, not only her beauty (phew, Paris was extraordinarily beautiful in person!).

Another significance was Michael O’Grady, the guitarist. He was a big deal. Somehow, he reminded me of Slash the entire time. Both technical and expressionism. From cutting rock riffs to beautiful refrains, emotions were leaking from the strings. I wrote earlier that Paris’s new music was similar to Soundgarden's. Michael’s guitar sometimes took the role of Chris Cornell’s voice: an emotional rising voice from beneath the earth, but by his guitar. And his technique was super solid; it would be worth paying the price to just look at his finger motions. I enjoyed an arena-class dynamic guitar performance on a tiny stage. Michael supported the majority of the entire band’s stability and impressionism, although other members were tight, too. He was definitely a wonderful guitarist who deserved more attention (I think that would be a nice match if he became Mötley Crüe’s touring guitarist instead of Mick Mars, though John 5 was a good idea as well. I’m sure he can do it).

Michael O’Grady (left)

In conclusion, Paris Jackson’s mini-concert made me optimistic about her new upcoming album and feature direction, no matter which way she pursues. The concert was a showcase of both sides. I look forward to the improvement of her vocal performance as well as memorizing the lyrics.

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OVERALL SCORE: 80/100

• Performance: ★★★+1/2
• Excitement / Fire: ★★★+3/4
• Vocals: ★★★
• Instrumental: ★★★★★
• Sound: ★★★★
• Setlist: ★★★★★
• Stage Setting / Lighting: ★★★★★ (lighting was pretty nice, enhancing Paris’s mysterious beauty)
• Better Than the Recordings: ★★★
• Chemistry with the Audience: ★★★+3/4