Young the Giant's "In The Open 2025" acoustic tour
Young the Giant sets up in Chicago and casually sells out both of their nights at the Athenaeum Theatre. The Athenaeum Theatre is a much smaller venue - with a capacity of [approximately] 950 people - but this was supposed to be a much more intimate setting, as it is an acoustic tour. Still, this is a pretty drastic change in setting for a band that can easily sell out a few-thousand-people venue. With all of that said - but as someone who has not experienced YTG live before - this does not mean that the performance was slow or lackluster by any means. As a matter of fact, they still put on an electric performance! And honestly, small, more intimate venues and performances are the best; it feels like with every spoken word, it is directed towards you.
Of course, YTG didn't come alone. They brought an up-and-coming singer/vocalist, Cassandra Coleman. When I say up-and-coming, I mean it. She has one of the most beautiful voices I have ever heard and is deserving of the title - someone who can become a prominent vocalist in the musical world. If you haven't heard of her, there's like a reason for that. Cassandra only has two songs out, both of which are dated for earlier this year - with the latest one having been released less than 2 weeks ago (showcased in a Netflix series).
Even before that, Cassandra really only really started posting on social media (TikTok) at the beginning of 2021. This is the same year that she actually ended up trying out for American Idol - in which she placed top 10. For any of our Chicago folks - or Lolla attendees - she also performed at Lollapalooza this year (2025). She clearly has some big things going on for her and I cannot wait to see what is next.
All-in-all, this live experience is all you could have asked more and then some - because an experience is the only thing you could call this. The venue was relatively small, the crowd was small, the turnout was huge, but the energy - from the crowd and the artists - was out of this world. I spoke with someone else, a colleague that has attended one of their (YTG) regular shows, and she stated that the energy from those shows is nothing short of grand. So, this just means that I look forward to seeing them again, but in a larger environment.
Still, sometimes I find it hard to picture Young the Giant on a larger stage - though this is not for a reason you might think. My first experience of YTG is from a 7+ year old video by this group of guys by the name of Yes Theory. They built this stage in their backyard in which it was their goal to release the first line of their clothing brand "Seek Discomfort." So, if you can imagine it, my only experiences of them, are of them on smaller stages - one of which was literally this last minute stage in a random backyard in Venice, CA. This does NOT mean that this was their start - it was just when I first heard about them. Believe it or not, they have been performing for over 15 years and really only started off as a thing they did for fun on YouTube, in the earlier days of the platform.
Ultimately, I am so happy to see how far they have come. They were great musicians then, and it seems like they have only continued to grow - and continue to do so. To, both, Young the Giant & Cassandra Coleman, I hope you have immeasurable success, as you both have an insane amount of talent.
If you haven't already heard of these two amazing artists, it's not too late to familiarize yourself with them. You may have to catch both of them on their own separate tours after October 7th, but I can assure you that it's worth it!
