Benson Boone, the backflip king, lands in San Jose

On Friday, August 7th, the SAP Center — home to the San Jose Sharks — played host to rising pop superstar Benson Boone for a mystical, magical night. Benson Boone’s Wanted Man World Tour promised magic and backflips… and did not disappoint.

The opening act of the show was American singer-songwriter Ashe, who, upon a little research, was born and raised in San Jose, California, making this an epic home show for her! Some may recognize Ashe as half of The Favors — the duo project she founded with friend Finneas O’Connell, brother of Billie Eilish. Ashe performed “The Little Mess You Made”, The Favors’ breakout hit, as well as some unreleased solo songs and her new single “Don’t Stop The Wedding”. Then, it was Boone time.

Right off the bat, Benson entered with a backflip — the first of many throughout the night.

For the first half of the show, Boone wore a striking white vest with cowboy-style fringe; his abs were on full display, paired with complementary denim jeans that flared at the bottom, including zipper embellishments. The man looked GOOD; he had the fans drooling. As far as stage production went, everything was top-tier with all the thrills and frills, including pyro, confetti, and a fancy portion of the stage at the end of the catwalk lifted off of the ground. Boone even sang from a small platform rigged to the ceiling while he sang over the mesmerized crowd. 

In his music video for “Mr. Electric Blue”, Boone wears a shirt that reads “One Hit Wonder”, leaning into some of the public’s reception of him after his global hit “Beautiful Things”. One thing the Most Wanted Man Tour proves is that Benson Boone is certainly no one-hit wonder. Hot off the heels of his sophomore album, American Heart, commercials and radio stations are routinely playing his songs — proving that Benson Boone is just getting started. 

Special moments during the show were explanations Boone gave behind the meaning of special songs. Introducing the song “My Greatest Fear”, Benson Boone explained it’s about losing his fans and audience during a performance: he loves what he does and wouldn’t change it for anything. During the intro of “Drunk In My Mind”, Benson said it was his favorite song to perform live; he even jumped off the stage and serenaded lucky audience members along the barricade! My favorite moment of the night was during “Slow It Down”, wtih Boone at the piano…

He’s a fantastic piano player.

That is, until the song picked up with Boone doing another signature backflip jump off the sparkling piano, kicking the song into an epic sing-along with the adoring and roaring fans. 

The Wanted Man Tour, all in all, was a fun time for everyone; Boone and Ashe, as well as their bands gave it their best performance. Benson Boone is a shining star that I fully believe will keep growing brighter. Just take care of those knees, Benson, the backflip king! 

Photography by Katey Schoenberger

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