Cameron Whitcomb – I Got Options Tour With Jonah Kagen 10/03/25 

A chance opportunity turned into a high-energy night of live music highlighting Cameron Whitcomb’s evolution as an artist.

HEIDI ROBINSON

Don’t hate me, but one would expect me to say that I’ve been looking forward to this concert for weeks. One would also expect me to say that I was stalking the tour of an artist that I loved and finally ended up there, in the crowd, bawling my eyes out. Well, sorry, but this is not the case. This is a case of random chance, a fantastic night and a crazy flashback to Season 20 of American Idol. 

On Thursday, Oct. 2, I was at a radio meeting and as always, I was having fun and enjoying the amazing environment. Then, there was an announcement of two available tickets for Cameron Whitcomb’s concert. I immediately recognized the name. The room was silent. Just before the ticket could be dismissed, I said, “Give it to me! I’ll take them! I know who he is! He was on ‘American Idol!’” 

He was the guy who had a great voice and randomly did backflips. The concert was the next day and I was ecstatic. I am a live music addict and so is my boyfriend, but insanely enough, we hadn’t seen live music at all this semester. After such a long hiatus, we could feel rhythmic adrenaline rushing through our veins. 

It was almost 8:00 p.m and we couldn’t stop smiling, ready to hear a talented band play. Cameron Whitcomb is a 22-year-old Canadian singer and songwriter from Nanaimo, British Columbia. His “I’ve Got Options” tour launched on August 5. Opening for Whitcomb was Jonah Kagen, a singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist born and raised in Savannah, Georgia. 

Going into the venue, Music Box, there was a pretty large crowd. We jumped in line, and once we were inside, it was like being taken over by an intense nostalgic feeling. I hadn’t seen live music or been in a venue in a while, and I was overcome with elation. As my boyfriend, Anthony, and I watched the soundchecks with great attention, me being a music freak, him, an actual musician, we also made note of everything around us

Jonah Kagen began to take the stage. It was easy to see that he had a great stage presence — and a great sense of humor. Kagen seemed like someone you could share a laugh with, which we  did. When Kagen opened his mouth to sing, beautiful, raw emotion came out. Modern folk country with a Christian sparkle that glittered in purple and red smoke. He sang one of his new releases, which is the title track ofhis latest album called “Sunflowers and Leather.” This song specifically reached its hand out and touched my soul. The lyrics were so poetically gorgeous, I immediately thought, “I have to listen to this when I get home!” The final verse of the song goes:

“And when I die I want my life to look like blue 

Skies and rain 

Sunflowers and leather is the way”

Then, with the addition of a beautifully enchanting guitar solo, I just felt so moved. But, to add more fuel to fire — or heartwrenching sadness to little sadness) — he went on to sing a song about his mom, titled “Krissy.” First, he spoke about it, then when he started playing, every word stuck to my chest like a magnet.This song’s hand reached to crush my heart. I really heard and felt every lyric and it made me think of my own mother, choking back tears. The final verse was: 

“It’s her she’s got to learn to love 

A mother’s all she ever was 

It’s her she’s got to learn to love 

A mother’s all she ever was”

Now for the main event, well, more like the intermission. The smells of the venue flooded my nose as my body heat continued to rise in level. I looked down at the backs of my hands, the thickest, black x’s staring back at me. When my gaze returned to the stage, soundchecks commenced again. Just a few minutes went by and BOOM! Absolute insanity! Surround sound screams carried Cameron Whitcomb onstage, and there he was. His stage presence was through the roof. I stood there looking at this 22 year old, who was once a teenager on “American Idol” doing backflips with a hoop through his nose. But more importantly, he was once an 18 year old getting told that he didn’t know what he was doing. He had never performed in front of an audience before, which worried the judges. So did his immense enthusiasm. Look at him now. 

What immediately struck me about this performance was how much Whitcomb’s voice improved. I had been a fan in the past, but it was clear that his musical journey has taken him far. He’s put in the work, because his vocals were much more open with insane control. He’s someone who really lets that stomach voice get to working. Also someone with their stomach out…as he removed the white tank off his back after the first song, revealing full coverage of tattoos. Honestly, Whitcomb was just so compelling. He was all over the place, contorting his body as if possessed by the spirit of Scott Weiland. I’m surprised he didn’t whip out the backflip. 

Through music, Whitcomb has been able to showcase his vulnerability and use it to overcome the many battles he has faced first hand and second hand in life. His lyrics were so powerful. I stood there in awe.  Then, the crowd got bigger, the crowd got pushier and now, there were no gaps. I could not see that much of Whitcomb, but I think this made it so much more immersive. The experience was immersive in a way that I was enveloped in the lyrics of his music and able to hear what he actually had to say. I could feel the heart beats of the drumset and the  rhythms of the electric guitar, paired with the sweet strumming of the acoustic. There was a TV above me displaying a close view of the stage that I occasionally looked at, but I didn’t enjoy looking at a screen. It didn’t feel real. It’s not. This is why I appreciate live music so much. It’s raw, authentic passion right there in front of you. 

Whitcomb is a powerful performer, from his authentic showmanship to his beautiful lyrics. He is labeled as a country/folk artist, however, this show took on a lot of modern pop and rock influences with his new record, “The Hard Way,”  going this route on a few tracks, such as “Hundred Mile High.” The band was absolutely outstanding with an epic solo from his drummer, Spencer Bowman. And, a killer guitar solo from his electric guitarist. 

They performed a cover of the Wheatus hit, “Teenage Dirtbag,” which first of all, sent the crowd into chaos, and second of all, was amazing. One song that I enjoyed immensely was “Pretty Little.” I was kind of in awe over this song because it was so good and I really wanted to listen to it when I got home. I also haven’t been able to stop singing the verse: 

“My pretty little heart-shaped box 

That I can’t keep locked no 

Matter how hard I try”

Yet, Whitcomb continued to tug at my pretty little heart strings because his words were so powerful and absolutely heartbreaking. Cameron Whitcomb is a fearless artist who has the courage and passion to share his life lyrically. His music brings up topics of leaving home at 17 years old, working on a pipeline, overcoming addiction, having to feel the pain of his friend’s passing due to addiction and everything before, after and in-between these events. You can feel Whitcomb’s emotion in his beautifully articulated words of life and in the raw passion of his voice. Be that as it may, there wasn’t a moment of sadness at the concert. Instead, it felt like overcoming sadness. Whitcomb and his band seemed like such an amazing group that truly took joy in their music. They were smiling from ear to ear, Whitcomb repeatedly cracking jokes with and about his matching jumpsuit-wearing band in between songs. There was so much joy on stage and within me because of their musical syringe. 

Cameron Whitcomb is no longer “the guy on ‘American Idol’ with the good voice who does backflips.” Cameron Whitcomb is now this real, authentic person that I saw on Oct. 3, with a story to tell and an amazing voice. Cameron Whitcomb is Cameron Whitcomb — a reminder of what makes live music and music itself so beautiful — reality.