Gigi Perez has been traveling across the US and Europe since early April on her first major headlining tour. Debuting her self-produced album, At The Beach, In Every Life, she seemed at home in the Theater of the Living Arts on South Street last Thursday.
As Perez told the crowd last week, she was very nervous on her “true first tour” in 2022 supporting Noah Cyrus, but the TLA brought her comfort and turned out to be her favorite stop on that run.
“I was sitting right there watching Noah Cyrus,” Perez said, pointing to the balcony. “So I’ve seen what you see.”
Gigi Perez | photo by Megan Matuzak for WXPN
A true singer-songwriter, Gigi Perez is a storyteller with a voice that’s undeniably stunning and raw. Her single “Sailor Song”, went viral in 2024 and, as she puts it, completely changed her life. The stage Thursday night at the TLA was stripped down, she stood center stage with her guitar, somewhat isolated from her bandmates and wore a white t-shirt with black jeans. Perez’s set felt matter-of-fact, no bullshit, a relief.
In the few breaks she took to directly address the young TLA crowd, she shared a lot and spoke to them like they had been friends for a long time. In one instance, she stopped herself mid sentence, Perez noticed someone in the crowd was wearing a Wendy Lane t-shirt, in utter disbelief. Wendy Lane was Perez’s high school band.
LA singer songwriter NIKOLE, in support of Gigi Perez, was no different. Like anyone who vents about an emotionally unavailable lover to a close friend, she introduced the 2025 single “spit it out” directly speaking to the inspiration behind the song with a cute chuckle: “Thanks, girl!”
NIKOLE – along with her longtime collaborator, best friend, and drummer Ludvig Broll – opened up the night. Her flirty and playful charisma on stage reeled the TLA crowd in, and her voice, often rippling over the strum of her guitar, kept them there. This came in handy for crowd participation later in the set.
Gigi Perez | photo by Megan Matuzak for WXPN
You could tell Perez was eager to bring onto the stage her younger sister, Bella, who was equally as excited. Their voices beautifully intertwined, giving the song “Twister” off At The Beach, In Every Life a new, heartwarming memory for fans in the TLA.
But that wasn’t the only guest: there was also beloved Philly-rooted musician and producer, Mt. Joy’s Matt Quinn. Together they wrote a song titled “In The Middle” which will appear on Mt. Joy’s next album Hope We Gist Have Fun, out May 30th. The fans at TLA were treated to the song’s live debut.
Perez brought the sound down low partway through “Fable,” off At The Beach, In Every Life, and only faint strums of her guitar remained. She opened up her heart in a vulnerable way: after losing her older sister Celene, Perez said it was an accomplishment just to leave her room during that time of deep grief. She firmly promised it gets better, little by little.
The songs off At The Beach, In Every Life are deeply personal, Perez told the packed TLA crowd, like the way voice memos from Celene appeared throughout.
Gigi Perez | photo by Megan Matuzak for WXPN
Saving it for last, “Sailor Song” instantly electrified the young fans. Their voices boomed in unison, so much so that Perez took out one of her earpieces to hear them fully.
“I don’t want to leave,” Perez said, stalling with a few more strums. Throwing her hair back, she let out a sharp exhale before leading the TLA one more time through the chorus.