21 July 10 - 16, 2025 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER Classified | MusiC | dish | Culture | unfair Park | Contents The Chainsmokers 9 P.M. THURSDAY, JULY 10 AND FRIDAY, JULY 11, SILO DALLAS, 1340 MANUFACTURING ST. $96.34+ AT SEETICKETS.US The duo of Alex Pall and Drew Taggart — who make up EDM powerhouse the Chainsmokers — is better known by their sound than what it looks like in the DJ booth. The pair has been af- filiated with some of the biggest hits of the last decade, including “Closer,” which features Halsey, as well as “Something Just Like This,” which featured an upstart British act named Coldplay, and last year’s “Don’t Lie” with Kim Petras. Although the Chainsmokers hasn’t em- barked upon a proper tour in three years and re- leased its most recent studio album two years ago, the Grammy-winning group stays busy with pop-up gigs and brief residencies like the one they’ll set up at Silo Dallas, which is rapidly marking its territory as the premier dance and EDM club in North Texas. PRESTON JONES Sixpence None the Richer 8 P.M. FRIDAY, JULY 11, TANNAHILL’S TAVERN AND MUSIC HALL, 122 E. EXCHANGE, SUITE 200, FORT WORTH. $61+ AT TICKETMASTER.COM A fun bit of trivia for the next time you find your- self out with friends: “Kiss Me,” the nigh-ubiqui- tous pop earworm from the late 1990s, has its roots in central Texas. That’s because the angelic voice of Leigh Nash was born and raised in New Braunfels before she joined forces with guitarist and songwriter Matt Slocum to form the nomi- nally Christian alt-rock-inclined Sixpence None the Richer. “Kiss Me,” from the group’s self-titled third album, catapulted them into the spotlight, earning them a Grammy nomination for best rock gospel album. (The same record also yielded an- other smash hit for the band, a sparkling cover of the La’s “There She Goes.”) Earlier this year, Six- pence None the Richer released its first album in 13 years, Live at Gruene Hall, documenting a 2024 performance at the historic venue. Alex Wong will kick off the evening with an opening set. PJ Jack Barksdale 2 P.M. SATURDAY, JULY 12, TULIPS, 112 ST. LOUIS AVE., FORT WORTH. $32.47+ AT SEETICKETS.US The idiom “wise beyond their years” is not al- ways carefully applied to young artists making their way in the world, but it unquestionably fits the music Fort Worth singer-songwriter Jack Barksdale is making. All of 17 years old, the artist has earned the endorsement of a titan of Texas music, the late Guy Clark, whose estate’s record label, Truly Handmade Records, released Barks- dale’s sophomore album, Voices, in June. It’s a striking, moving collection of songs, typified by his duet with another prodigy, Austin’s Grammy- winning Sarah Jarosz, who appears on “Mar- tyrs,” a single from the new album. This hometown gig will double as Barksdale’s album release party, and a fresh chance to appreciate the staggering talent this young man wields. With Abe Partridge. PJ Ashanti 8 P.M. SATURDAY, JULY 12, TEXAS TRUST CU THEATRE, 1001 PERFORMANCE PLACE, GRAND PRAIRIE. $58+ AT AXS.COM More than a decade has passed since Ashanti’s last studio album (that would be 2014’s Bravehe- art, for those of you keeping score at home) so you might wonder how, precisely, she’s got the pull to fill a roughly 6,000-cap music venue when lately, she’s been more preoccupied by film and television acting roles — oh, and in 2023, finally marrying fellow R&B ballad maker and rap star Nelly after a years-long, on-again and off-again relationship. In a word: nostalgia. Ashanti’s reign in the early 2000s as one of R&B’s peerless vocal- ists remains untarnished; that demographic will turn out in droves, and she’s recently popped up on fresh singles from the likes of Jermaine Dupri and Lil Wayne. With Dru Hill and Mario. PJ Mereba 8 P.M. SUNDAY, JULY 13, KESSLER THEATER, 1230 W. DAVIS. $31.79+ AT PREKINDLE.COM Los Angeles-based singer, songwriter, producer and actress Mereba (born Marian Azeb Mereba in Alabama) fuses hip-hop, R&B, soul and folk mu- sic into a blended whole, as demonstrated by her arresting third full-length project, The Breeze Grew a Fire, which she co-produced with Sam Hoffman and which dropped in February, her first such release in four years. “So many things in my life changed in that window of time,” Mereba told WFUV in February. “I think the most significant shift was the lyrical approach, and the kinds of things I wanted to write about. I became more and more called to the parts of my life I had never written about before, because I finally had time to sit and reflect on my journey and the relation- ships that lasted through each peak and valley.” Indeed, press materials for Fire describe the proj- ect as fueled by “lived experiences from across the country, early influences and her maternal in- stinct in a journey of the rediscovery of her truest self.” PJ Vincent Haycock Singer-songwriter, producer and actress Mereba pulls from deep within her own life for her third LP. | LET’S DO THIS | t Music
