On the evening of November 1st, the Warriors’ Chase Center filled with anticipation. Thousands gathered to watch Maggie Rogers perform at one of the final stops on her Don’t Forget Me tour. Rogers belted out 20 ballads, mostly from her new album of the same name.
Additionally, she performed a Bob Dylan cover in harmony with Baez mid-show. As the final two stops on her tour, November 1st in San Francisco and November 2nd in Los Angeles, are mere days before the 2024 presidential election, Rogers championed her political stances amidst her singing and encouraged the audience to get out and vote.
The night began as opener Ryan Beatty took the stage at 7:30 pm, performing a brief but vibrant set of hits from his latest album, Calico. After Beatty’s opener, breakout indie-alternative star Maggie Rogers took the stage to perform an unashamed collaboration of music, activism, and emotion.
Between songs, Rogers interacted warmly with her audience, giving the massive Chase Center an intimate and personal feel. Mid-show, Rogers made her endorsement, calling out for her audience to “vote for Kamala Harris!”
The show’s climactic moment brought together music and social justice, as Rogers invited “Queen of Folk” activist Joan Baez to the stage. The pair performed a harmonic duet to Bob Dylan’s “Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright,” which received a powerfully warm reception from the crowd.
Baez has been known for her activism since the 1960s, as she championed civil rights, women’s rights, and worker’s (union) rights. Baez gained much of her fame from her performances at folk festivals in the early ’60s, particularly her performance of the gospel classic “We Shall Overcome,” which she later sang at the March on Washington in 1963 in support of Martin Luther King Jr.
Though Baez didn’t vocally endorse Harris as Rogers did when she took the stage, she breathed new meaning into the classic hit in the context of the election. “Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright,” was a follow-up to Rogers’ call to action. As the pair harmonized on the refrain, the breakup anthem seemed to transform into a hymn of hope and love. Baez’s voice had an inspirational lilt, further encouraging voters to cast their ballots.
This stop on the tour followed Rogers’ appearance in the critical swing state of Michigan, on October 29th, where she performed at a Harris/Walz rally. This San Francisco stop on the tour felt momentous, making Rogers’ endorsement feel that much more impactful, the backtrack of Light On giving spirit to the crowd. Though it is uncertain how far-reaching of an impact Rogers’ show will have — San Francisco is already a very liberal city and Maggie Rogers fans are not typically a demographic that leans red — elections often have a way of surprising us. Regardless of the 2024 Presidential Election results, Rogers’ show definitely used her music to call fans to action. Before playing “Light On,” Rogers repeated her speech from the Ann Arbor rally at the Chase Center, leaving voters with a call to action in the name of positivity:
“…The future feels so uncertain, and I don’t always know what to do with that feeling, but there is something to me that is greater than fear, and that’s action,” Rogers maintained. “You can fight back against the fear of Donald Trump and everything that he creates. You can take action against his darkness. You can choose the light.”
Upon hearing these words, the stadium erupted into cheers. Waves of phone flashlights flickered on as “Light On” began, reflecting the energy Rogers instilled in the crowd.
Together, Baez, Beatty, and Rogers communicated a message of activism and bravery amidst a turbulent election season. The show’s mood was simultaneously melancholy and hopeful, as the audience sang breakup ballads while dancing under the light of a glittering disco ball. Time will tell the results of the election, but music very may well be a powerful voice for change.
