From a Front Row Fangirl

Spilling the Secrets of Gracie Abrams Secret of Us Tour!

Dear Fellow Fangirls,

Just this past month I had the pleasure of going to two nights of Gracie Abrams shows on her Secret of Us tour in Denver, Colorado. I spent both nights at the show dancing with friends, crying my eyes out and screaming her lyrics so loudly I lost my voice.

While these shows were extrememly therapeutic, and just what every girl needs to experience after a break up, she offered more than therapy. Gracie offered a safe place to express your emotions and feel the same things she felt while writing her sophomore album “The Secret of Us”.

Sarah McKay says, “She came out on stage and I just started crying, just in awe of her. Her presence and performance was lifechanging and inspiring. She’s someone I’ve looked up to for so long, so seeing her in person was just something I didn’t even think was real until she was right there.”

Gracie Abrams did a phenomenal job encorporating her brand and theme of the album into her live shows. Using herself as a brand helps the fans get a more authentic experience from their favorite artist, and really leans into having her as a “friend” which is something I know her fans appreciate.

Her Close To You VIP package included the following:

• One premium reserved or general admission ticket with early entry
• Early Access to tour merch
• A pre-show expereince that included a mini documentary about the process of writing the album and preparing for this tour
• A polaroid photo opportunity in front of a “The Secret of Us” themed background
• A postcard set, and a chance to ‘share a secret’ with Gracie on one of the postcards from the set, with the promise it would be given to and read by her
• A limited edition merchandise bundle
  • BTS look at the album creation process in a memorative booklet
  • A VIP specific tote bag
  • A “I LOVE US” baseball cap
  • Postcard Set
  • A Gracie Abrams themed disposable camera
  • An “Asshole-of-the-Year Award” keychain
  • A VIP laminate lanyard with a special message from Gracie

That being said I have a few ideas to help Gracie create an even bigger experience for fans at her shows, fully lean into her album’s title and her brand as a whole.

Share a Secret with Gracie:

• Share a Secret with Gracie emphasizes the tour name while offering fans a way to feel more connected to their favorite artist, like she is their friend. This could be executed with a blank wall, and a pad of sticky notes. Fans would have the opportunity to write a secret of theirs to share on the sticky note and then stick it on the wall. Gracie would then get to read all of the messages after the show. This could also be a fun way to create more visual content for Gracie to post on her social media after each tour stop, thanking each city for “Sharing their Secrets” with her.

A Ribbon Bar:

• Gracie loves to encorporate extravagant acessories in her simple wardrobe; one of her favorites being bows or ribbons in her hair. Fans have picked up the bows, and they can be spotted in almost every girls hair in the crowd at her shows. I thought there could be a ribbon table where fans can pick out their own ribbon to tie up in a bow in their hair to ensure they are best dressed in a Gracie way.

Surprise Songs:

• I think introducing a different surprise song at each show would be a fun addition to her theme of secrets, and would pay homage to Taylor Swift (one of her many musical idols). This would also be a simple way to spark conversation online as well before and after shows. Taylor Swift fans are always itching to know what surpise song was sung at her shows, and I would imagine Gracie’s fans would share the same sentiment.

Take the Risk Phone Booth:

• Gracie Abrams has a song on her new album called “Risk” that discusses taking the risk and confessing your feelings for someone. She talks about not caring whether it’s the right choice or not, and just taking the risk no matter the consequences. I think a fun way to incorporate this would be to have a pop-up phone booth at select tour stops where fans can call their crushes, signficant others or friends, and leave them a message cofessing their thoughts and feelings toward them romantic or not. The phone booth wouldn’t actually work but it would record their message so they could “take the risk” like Gracie did. These recording could also be used in another campaign or in the background of a tour recap video.

Unlocked Secrets Scavenger Hunt:

• Gracie and her team will often hide merch around the city that she is performing in. I think a good way to rebrand this to fit the tour theme would be to call it an “Unlocked Secret Scavenger Hunt” where fans can find “secrets” or clues throughout the city leading them to a piece of merch if they can “unlock all of the secrets”.

With all of these marketing ideas aside Gracie truly does put on an incredible show with or without a better fan experience. An example of this is actually the standard she has set for her fans through her influence and personality. Everyone is so kind and welcoming it truly makes the concert experience for everyone that much better. You could see this as fans traded Gracie-themed friendship bracelets with each other in line, or as we were waiting for Gracie to come stage. You could also see this in the fan-made chants screamed in songs like, ‘Blowing Smoke’, ‘I Miss You, I’m Sorry’ and ‘Friend’. As a newer Gracie fan I appreciated these moments. It truly made me proud to be a fangirl.

Gretta Barrios says it best, ” It’s difficult to say that any artist…has the capacity to care about their fans from more than a surface level, but when it comes to Gracie it really feels like she is taking into consideration her fans input, and that being with them has a positive impact for her in more than just monetary reasons. When you see the way she talks to her supporters you can see she genuinely appreciates them, which makes it hard to not want to be a fan of hers.”

Watching Gracie perform on stage was another level. You may think she’s an incredible singer while listening to her music on streaming platforms, but the runs and harmonizing she did live was spectacular. I’ve never heard an artist sound even better live, so this was truly breathtaking to watch and hear.

“I love when you go to a live show, and the singer makes the performance unqiue. Gracie does a good job at showing her fans that she appreciates them buying a ticket, and coming out to a show by going full throttle in her performances.”

“I sat further to the back in seats and actually regretted it. I wish I would have been closer, and got to experience the live show in the GA crowd…that being said even from my seat in the back I could still tell that the entire crowd no matter the age-young 12-year-olds to girls in their late 20s-connected to her music on a personal level” says Amy Flanders, a Gracie Abrams first-timer.

Through her set she would continuously make sure everyone in the crowd was okay, and having a good time. I’ve noticed a spike of artists doing this recently because of the lack of concert ettiquite at some shows, but luckily at Gracie’s everyone enjoyed themselves and looked out for one another. This is just another example of the welcoming fandom she has created.

She also took the time to share some of her deeper thoughts, and feelings that she felt, and experienced while writing her album. It was very cool to get to hear her share her experiences because it’s not something a lot of artists do. It’s one thing to share your experiences through song, but to do it live in front of a crowd is another story; one we all appreciated.

As I mentioned above, there is a very big community in the Gracie fandom. In result of the friendships formed between fans, Gracie offered a way for more of those connections to be made at her “After the Show Debriefs”. At every tour stop Gracie had she made sure to plan a debrief at a local coffee shop. At these specific shops there would be a Gracie-themed drink, a pin that said, “I went to the Secret of Us Tour, and all I got was this pin.” and a long line of fans out the door.

My friends and I met a few different groups of people at our debrief, traded concert experiences and friendship bracelets while enjoying our coffee, and pastries. I thought this was a very cool way for Gracie to show her fans that she sees them and the friendships they’ve created with each other.

All of those special things aside my favorite thing about Gracie is that the presence of friendship is overwhelming.

You see it in the way Gracie interacts with the crowd between songs, like her small waves to the crowd, her holding fans hands on the barricade and singing directly to them as they cry tears of joy physically moved by her lyrics, to tying ribbons in each others hair (Gracie fans and bows go hand-in-hand, you can’t have one without the other) and the swapping of frienship bracelets from fan to fan. It makes the show that much more of an experience to remember and one that differs from other live shows.

Going to a Gracie show feels like seeing a friend for the first time in a while. She makes you feel seen and understood with her lyrics and personality, and because of that I am forever grateful I got to experience “The Secret of Us” Tour.

hugs and kisses,

from a front row fangirl