When Lucy Dacus, a Richmond, Virginia native, recently took the stage at the Altria Theater, she didn’t realize every show leading up to tonight was practice for this one. Dacus returned to her roots for a hometown show, part of her final leg of the Forever Is a Feeling Tour.
Longtime fans, locals, family, and friends all crowded the historic theater located on Virginia Commonwealth University’s campus, where Dacus attended.
Dacus has always had a special relationship with the city that can be retraced throughout her music. Her connection was palpable in the weeks leading up to the show; she even released a new single that has been played unreleased throughout the years called “Bus Back to Richmond.” In her show on Sept. 19, she shared that it is about “whoever thinks it’s about them.”
Lucy opened the night as she has done all tour, with her song “Hot & Heavy” from 2021’s Home Video. Being in Richmond made the opening line, “Being back here makes me hot in the face,” even more poignant and powerful as she is in the city she was originally writing about. The music video also takes place at Richmond’s iconic Byrd Theater.
Watch the official music video for “Hot & Heavy” by Lucy Dacus on YouTube:
Slow Pulp opened the night. They are an indie rock band known for blending dreamy textures with raw, emotional honesty. Fronted by singer-guitarist Emily Massey, alongside guitarist Henry Stoehr, bassist Alex Leeds, and drummer Teddy Mathews, the group began in Madison, Wisconsin, before relocating to Chicago.
Throughout Slow Pulp’s set, they brought sound shifts between hazy, intimate moments and fuzz-laden bursts of energy, often drawing comparisons to shoegaze, dream pop, and ’90s alt-rock. They played a collection of songs from all of their releases, and their music explores themes of isolation, growth, and love.
Alongside Slow Plup, the night was filled with many other special guest musicians. The first was Lucy’s mom, Sandy Dacus, who sang Lucy’s song “My Mother and I” with her. Later on, sitting off the edge of the stage, Lucy brought out Ali Thibodeau of Deau Eyes, a Richmond music project, to sing “Going, Going, Gone.” For Bullseye, Lucy’s song with Hozier, she tapped Landon Elliott, another Richmond artist, to sing Hozier’s verse. Dacus said he was possibly the most fitting guest vocally for the song this tour.
“Addictions” was played for the first time since 2022 in Richmond, and Dacus also noted that, since her trio Boygenius never made it to a Richmond show, her encore of “True Blue” was the first time it was played in the city and state.
Perhaps the biggest difference between this last leg and the previous leg of her Forever Is a Feeling Tour isn’t music at all, but that Dacus has been legally marrying people on stage. Over the summer, she used social media to find out if people facing barriers would like to get married at the tour, and her team and ordained status made it a possibility.
During “Best Guess,” six couples came on stage to dance, and Dacus proceeded to perform the wedding ceremony before giving each couple a rose.
Watch the official music video for “Best Guess” by Lucy Dacus on YouTube:
Dacus made several changes and adjustments, such as a rock version of one of her oldest hits, “I Don’t Want to Be Funny Anymore,” and an additional verse to “Lost Time” which she has played selectively throughout the tour.
Between updating lighting and screen visuals, arrangements of music and tweaking setlists, Dacus and her team were keeping fans on their toes, whether it was their first show of the tour or if they had seen her at previous tour stops this year.
The theater, elegant with its proscenium arch and history, stood as both stage and witness to an artist who has grown far beyond her beginnings while still carrying them with her. Lucy’s ties to the place run deep, growing up in the area’s DIY music scene, doing early house shows to help shape her identity as a person and artist. The evening was suffused with that sense of place: a mingling of memory, pride, and the recognition of change, both in herself and in Richmond.
Dacus wore a custom venue jacket with paintings and patches that are nods to the city and shouted out people with who she went to Vacation Bible School with, or who knew her music teacher’s mom. Her dad even made a show-specific poster, making it clear she was happy to be playing at home again.
Setlist:
Calliope Prelude (recording)
Hot & Heavy
Ankles
Addictions
Modigliani
Limerence
First Time
VBS
Talk
Best Guess
Brando
Big Deal
My Mother & I (with Lucy’s Mom)
Going Going Gone (with Deau Eyes)
Bullseye (With Landon Elliott)
Most Wanted Man
I Don’t Wanna Be Funny Anymore
Forever Is a Feeling
Encore:
Bus Back to Richmond
True Blue
Night Shift
Here are some photos of Lucy Dacus performing live at Altria Theater on Sept. 19, 2025. All pictures copyright and courtesy of Sami Pye.
