REVIEW & GALLERY: Jessie Reyez’s Paid In Memories Tour Stops In San Francisco
REVIEW
REVIEW
☆ BY ELIJAH CLOWER ☆
JESSIE REYEZ BROUGHT ONE OF THE MOST HEARTFELT, SOUL-CLEANSING PERFORMANCES OF THE YEAR to The Masonic in San Francisco. From the moment she stepped onstage, she set the tone for the night with what she called her three rules/goals for every show.
“#1: This is a no-shame zone.” Whether you’re an introvert barely nodding your head or someone belting lyrics like you wrote them, she insisted the room was a judgment-free space—“be true and be you.”
“#2: You’re leaving here sounding like you smoke 80 cigarettes a day.” A promise rooted in joy, chaos, and singing your lungs out.
And finally, “#3: This show must be a symbiotic experience.” Jessie explained, “Every time I come on stage you guys give me the most beautiful energy, so I want to make sure I give that back—and no matter what’s going on in your life, that you leave here better than when you came in.”
And she delivered on every single one.
Across four years of concert photography and reviews, I genuinely don’t think I’ve seen an artist more interactively connected with their crowd than Jessie. She didn’t just speak to the audience—she had full conversations. At least five or six people were engaged directly mid-show, and what made it even more impressive was her ability to remember their names and call back to them later, weaving them into transitions and emotional moments. It’s one thing to interact; it’s another to make a room of thousands feel like a living, breathing dialogue. That level of presence shows how deeply she cares about her fans, far beyond surface-level stage banter.
I’d have to say her third rule hit the deepest: making sure everyone left better than they came in. And she truly meant it. I walked in excited to cover another show, but I walked out happier — lighter, more grounded, and carrying a kind of warmth you don’t usually leave concerts with. If I had to sum it up in one sentence, going to a Jessie Reyez show is a must for the mind, body, and soul.
