Photo by Olivia Cangelosi
Julien Baker & TORRES dazzled The Lyric on Tuesday night in matching sequined suits with a full live band. The April 29 concert was a stop on their current “Send a Prayer My Way Tour,” named for their album “Send a Prayer My Way,” which was released on April 18.
The Lyric began to fill with patrons at 7 p.m. who were waiting for the opening band Big Benny Bailey to start at 8 p.m. and Julien Baker & TORRES to follow at 9 p.m.
Baker, a Memphis native, is well-known both for her solo projects but also for her involvement in American indie rock supergroup Boygenius. TORRES, the stage name of Mackenzie Ruth Scott, was raised in Macon, Ga., and is a Belmont University graduate. The pair have worked together professionally since 2024.
The concert primarily featured songs from the album “Send a Prayer My Way.” The show opened with “Bottom of a Bottle,” eliciting a rousing cheer from the crowd. “Dirt” was another crowd favorite, offering a solemn moment with acoustic guitars and live violin.
Both Baker and Scott are open about their queer identities and are popular for their lyrics that tell of the experience of growing up with these identities in religious settings in the South. Scott dedicated “No Desert Flower,” a song about staying with a long-term partner even if there are rough patches, to their wife as the crowd cheered and several crowd members shouted affirmations.
Sydney Guntharp, a junior political science and English double major from Hernando, Miss., came to the concert because they like the community that forms around Baker’s music.
“(I’m here because) I like Boygenius,” Guntharp said.
They also expressed that the concert helped them connect with Oxford’s LGBTQ+ community.
Kaitlyn Busby, a sophomore music education from Waynesboro, Miss., expressed a similar sentiment, saying that Baker’s recently announced relationship with Boygenius band member Lucy Dacus encouraged them to attend.
“I’m here because I’m a really big fan of Boygenius,” Busby said. “I’m a huge fan of Lucy Dacus specifically, and I was like ‘Oh, Lucy’s girlfriend’s in town. I should go.’ I also like country music.”
Busby also said they were excited to meet new people in the queer community at the concert.
“I’m definitely excited to be here with the community in general,” Busby said. “I’ve talked to so many people so far, and that’s been fun (to meet) people that I didn’t even know existed that are part of the queer community of Oxford, and that’s been so fun. I think just being here in general really connects me to the community and I really love that.”
Amidst playing their own original songs, Julien Baker & TORRES also performed two covers, both well-known country hits that the crowd sang along to. Tim McGraw’s “Something Like That” and Merle Haggard’s “Mama Tried” were given a new life under the lens of being sung by two queer Southern women.
“This song is for everyone whose parents wished they turned out different,” Baker said before “Mama Tried.”
The duo also played an unreleased song. “My Baby Loves Me More Than She Used To” was the only song of the evening that did not also have the backing vocals of the crowd.
Kent Bynum, a sophomore biology major from Ellisville, Miss., expressed his joy at hearing an unreleased song.
“(My favorite part) was probably the song that they haven’t released yet,” Bynum said. “Yes, that was definitely my favorite part.”
Deja Samuel, an upcoming graduate student in southern studies from Hattiesburg, Miss., thoroughly enjoyed the performance.
“I’m a new Julien Baker fan,” Samuel said. “I think (she and TORRES) both have beautiful voices, and experiencing that live and the story within their songs was my favorite part.”
