Tessa Violet has spent years building a platform for herself within the alternative pop industry, and her work has paid off. With her extravagant on-stage outfits and classic yellow bob, Violet is becoming an easily recognizable figure within the genre. Having been on three tours within the past year alone — two independent and one with the noted alternative band “Half Alive” — she has set herself apart as being not just a musician but a performer.
The “My God!” tour kicked off in New Mexico July 27 and then traveled to Phoenix’s Crescent Ballroom for the second show of the over-month-long series. The tour’s name is drawn from the title of her newest album, which features some of her hit singles such as “YES MOM” and “You Are Not My Friend”.
Frances Garrett, professionally known as Frances Forever, will be opening for Violet for the duration of the tour. Known for their spunky pop sound and engaging lyrics, they took the online world by storm in 2020 with their song “Space Girl”.
When asked how they came to open for Violet, Garrett said, “Honestly, our managers were friends, and they were at lunch and were like ‘this would be a cool thing to happen’, and I feel like we have a similar fanbase.”
During their opening set, they engaged with the audience and passionately performed their songs, even falling to their knees on stage during some songs. They explained they draw their energy from the environment.
“I just feel it from the audience usually, or from the people that I’m playing with. Soraya, my guitarist, always has the best energy coming on stage and gives 110%,” Garrett said. “Like this is so fun and it’s so cool that I get to do this for a living, so that fuels up the energy.”
Violet’s set was electric, incorporating special effects and outfit changes to match the energy of her songs. Starting off the show with her pink shimmer bodysuit and later adding a matching tulle-like robe, Violet captivated the audience’s attention. Before her final songs and encore performance, she took a moment to leave the stage and change into a yellow corseted gown, from which the skirt later detached to reveal a second shimmer bodysuit, this time in a golden hue.
Her setlist included a mix of songs from her newest album, as well as a few singles and a collection of songs from her previously released album “Bad Ideas”, which she put out in 2019. During her show, Violet spoke about her experiences from her time being a songwriter and the power she feels her lyrics can hold.
“I do believe to be a songwriter is to be a spellcaster,” Violet told the crowd, referencing her belief that your words create your reality since they impact your mood and perspective.
She shared the stage with her drummer, Mike “The Machine” McKerracher, and her guitarist Dante Cimadamore, to whom she’s been publicly engaged since December 2022. Violet’s tour continued through the United States and parts of Canada until September when she began a brief stint on “The Road to Bittersweet Haze” tour with Cavetown and Cafuné.