We♥KC! February 15-21, 2024, Upcoming concerts / shows (Kansas City / Lawrence, KS)

Read more Kansas City Music Guide.

The party continues!

Downtown KC has been on a high since Sunday’s big game, and festivities continued through Mardi Gras, the formal announcement of a downtown Royals stadium, and the Valentine’s Day parade. Live shows are also back in full force too after somewhat of a winter/holiday break, so get out and see a show while those temps remain mild.

Let’s take look at the Kansas City / Lawrence KS metro musical happenings for the upcoming week, from February 15th-21st

(FYI, ticket hyperlinks are embedded in each show’s headline)

THURSDAY FEBRUARY 15

Nina Simone: Four Women (play), through-Mar 3 Copaken Stage, Power and Light Dist, $49-$79

A living tribute to one of the most beguiling, effective and still urgent singers, Nina Simone: Four Women is an impactful night of live theater which imagines how the iconic chanteuse gave voice to countless Black women fighting to overcome stereotypes and racism.

It is September 16, 1963, the day after the bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama and Simone is grappling with the shift of her career from artist to artist-activist declaring, “An artist’s responsibility is to reflect the times.”

Including some of her most popular Civil Rights anthems such as “Mississippi Goddam,” and “Young, Gifted, and Black” the KC Rep staging of this play examines Nina’s artistry and the women around her as their journey leads them down a path of discovery and healing.

Stay tuned for our WHM review following the weekend, and note that the Saturday, February 24th 2pm performance will include ASL interpretation from Juliana Ladd and Jasmine Velasco.

Eric Bellinger, Feb 15, Madrid, $29-$49

The Grammy-nominated R&B/soul singer and songwriter is on the North American leg of his Rebirth Tour with special guest Zae France, which launched in late January.

The Rebirth Tour will support Bellinger’s upcoming project, The Rebirth 3, the third installment of his project series that launched in 2014.

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 16

Peter Pan KC Ballet, Feb 16-25, Kauffman Center,$34-$149

It’s the classic family adventure for those who never want to grow up! Witness the magic of Peter Pan as he flies into the Darling family nursery, convincing Wendy, John, and Michael to join him for the adventure of a lifetime in Never Never Land, his enchanted home. The troublesome Tinker Bell, the Lost Kids, their nemesis Captain Hook, and a hungry crocodile all help bring J.M. Barrie’s fantastical tale to life (which just went into public domain, by the way)..

Features choreography by Devon Carney and music from Carmon DeLeone as performed by the Kansas City Symphony.

Rodney Carrington, Feb 16, Ameristar Casino, $65-$87

The multi-talented comedian, actor, Country singer and writer has performed around the world and is one of the top 10 highest-grossing touring comedians for the past two decades. Carrington has also recorded eight major record label comedy albums, which were followed by three of his own original albums on his record label, one of which hit number one on iTunes in 2019.

Over the years, Carrington has gotten his name out there, including starring in his own TV sitcom, “Rodney”, which ran for two seasons on ABC, co-wrote and starred in a film with Toby Keith, and appeared on many other shows as well. He even appeared on the Trace Adkins’ music video “I Got My Game On.”

SATURDAY FEBRUARY 17

Enrique Iglesias w Pitbull and Ricky Martin, Feb 17, T-Mobile Center,$54-$294

Enrique Iglesias, Ricky Martin, and Pitbull are extending their one-of-a-kind arena party – The Trilogy Tour – into 2024 with this leg of 18 shows, which makes a local stop. The Live Nation-produced tour with these three Latin megastars delivers an electrifying mix of their biggest career-spanning hits with influences of reggaeton, salsa pop, dance, and electronic music, backed by world-class production and state-of-the-art visuals over its four-hour duration.

Steel Panther, Feb 17, The Truman,$28.50-$50

The California glam metal jokesters continue their "On The Prowl" tour, in support of their latest full-length (huh, huh!). The band states: "As Steel Panther wraps up another banner year with all of our upcoming magical tour dates, we are simultaneously preparing ourselves for the most incredible year to come. 2024 will be jam packed with whimsical adventure, high-octane performances and heavy metal — very much like our crotches."

Drummer Stix Zadinia adds: "In the event you haven't heard the amazing news already — aside from Punxsutawney Phil not seeing his shadow, Steel Panther is adding dates to our 'On The Prowl' world tour 2024. No matter your age, education level, financial strata, relationship status or kinky perversions — we implore you to come see the most irreverent, bombastic, slippery, sweaty, damp and dank heavy metal show ever put on by four beautiful, young men in spandex."

Arrive early for Seattle band Moon Fever (Mitch Micoley, Triston Bracht, Dave Orton,Troy Wageman.) who should be “Getting Loud” based on the title of their most recent single and full album. “Payphone Blues”.

SUNDAY FEBRUARY 18

Band of Horses, Feb 18, Uptown Theater

Yep, Things Are Great! The Seattle indie folk rock band wraps their tour right here in KC and it’s been a special outing, called “An Evening With Band of Horses” and features no opener and both acoustic and electric sets. “This tour is gonna be special,” say the band and should be a great show for both the longtime fans and curious, as they’ll start quiet in the first set, then roar back with amps up for the finale. Warning– Very few if any tickets remain, so act fast!

Black Stone Cherry, Saint Asonia Feb 18, Madrid,$35-$65

The two roots rock bands are out on a co-headline tour through the next of next month, with Any Given Sin opening as well. Black Stone Cherry’s latest album, "Screamin' At The Sky", was released last fall via Mascot Records and prefaced that with the album's lead single, "Out Of Pocket".

The Kentucky-based band, featuring Chris Robertson (lead vocals/guitar), Ben Wells (guitar/backing vox) and John-Fred Young (drums/backing vox), are joined for the first time on an album recording by Steve Jewell Jr. (ex-OTIS). The band's fanbase will be more than familiar with Steve, as he has been touring with them since 2021.

MONDAY FEBRUARY 19

TUESDAY FEBRUARY 20

WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 21

Landon Conrath, Feb 21, Encore at Uptown,$15

The young Minneapolis songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist was actually a drummer by trade, but we’re glad he stumbled on using his vocals. Since making his debut in 2020, his hook-laden indie-pop has become a viral sensation on Spotify., landing on influential playlists virtually overnight. We like that he covered a modern classic holiday song last year as well.

Folk Alliance International Festival, Feb 21-25, Crown Center,$425-$695

Hundreds of local, national and international acts will again descend upon KC for the annual Folk Alliance International Conference, presented by Folk Alliance International. It’s the world’s largest gathering of the folk music industry and community (crossing a diverse array of genres including Appalachian, Americana, Blues, Bluegrass, Celtic, Cajun, Global Roots, Hip-Hop, Old-Time, Singer-Songwriter, Spoken Word, Traditional, Zydeco, and various fusions). And, a rarity – select general public tickets have been made available.

One artist we’ll highlight is ISMAY, a Bay Area singer-songwriter playing several showcase events over the conference dates Aka Avery Hellman, their new album “Desert Pavement”, was just released on January 26^th and follows critically acclaimed 2020 debut, “Songs of Sonoma Mountain”. This new record is a continuation of their lyrical exploration of life spent on the farmland.

Thumpasaurus, Feb 21, The Bottleneck- Lawrence,$18-$20

The campy Los Angeles-based funk outfit is out on their Struttin’ Across America tour, the flashy, feisty outfit’s first headlining trek since 2018. The band has enjoyed a recent boost in popularity thanks to the success of “Struttin'”. The 2021 track first garnered viral attention on the band’s TikTok before reaching an even wider audience when it was synced in a popular Samsung commercial featuring a selfie-taking cat, and they also performed the song on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.

Subtronics, Hedex, Wooli, Jon Casey, Feb 21 Cable Dahmer Arena- Independence, $25.50-$46

The EDM sensations are poised to bring the explosive live performances on their "TESSERACT" tour. Channeling his fascination with the tesseract, a four-dimensional geometric marvel also known as a "hypercube," Subtronics will debut all-new stage design and breathtaking visual elements during this 16-show run, and the "Asteroid" producer, who was named one of EDM.com's best music producers of 2020, is also currently recording his sophomore album.

"TESSERACT" features a special guest, Wooli, who said the tour is "gonna be a big one." Fans can also expect to hear some drum & bass from Hedex and more bass music from Jon Casey.

National Touring act coming to Kansas City, Lawrence, KS, Topeka, KS, or vicinity?  Let us know so we can spotlight the appearance-email johnc@weheartmusic.com