SHINEDOWN | DANCE KID, DANCE TOUR: LIVE AT KIA FORUM

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Dance, L.A., Dance: Live at Kia Forum

August 7th, 2025 Review by Joey Clark

A few months into their US tour dubbed the Dance, Kid, Dance Tour, Shinedown stopped by the Kia Forum to serve up a memorable night of their patented flavor of hard rock that shook the nearly 60-year-old venue.

Before the band took the stage, they had the talents of country artist Morgan Wade, and ‘90’s juggernaut Bush open up the night.

On the heels of her recent album release, “The Party Is Over (recovered),” Wade took the stage with confidence to kick off the evening. The country artist from Virginia delivered her first of seven songs, “High in Your Apartment.”

Coming from her new record, the tune was a melancholy, heartfelt piece that intrigued the audience. It was evident that this icebreaker of a song had captivated those in attendance and laid the groundwork for the songs to follow.

Wade continued to leave her mark on the Kia Forum as she progressed through the set with an incredible vocal performance. She closed the set with the poignant, bittersweet tune, “Wilder Days” off her major-label debut album, “Reckless,” followed by an instrumental nod to “Crazy Train,” no doubt an endearing tribute to the late, great, Ozzy Osbourne. As Wade and her band exited the stage you could feel they had made a lasting impression on.

After a brief change over, the stage donned a backdrop for Bush and as soon as the house lights fell, excited fans cheered in anticipation.

Bush emerged from the sides of the stage and the venue erupted into a passionate frenzy, and yes, there were quite a few heartfelt callouts for lead singer, Gavin Rossdale.

Without missing a beat, the band broke into “Scars” off their newest record, “I Beat Loneliness.” Bush were here to remind us they were still a force to be reckoned with and this latest track drove the notion home as the audience became entranced.

Once the audience was locked in, Bush carried on to perform the fan favorite, “Machinehead,” followed by “60 Ways to Forget People” and “Everything Zen.”

When wrapping up the latter, Rossdale said, “I know it’s Sunday but we came here for a fucking good time.” Then he acknowledged, “That was first single we ever we released. Launched here in California, Los Angeles, and KROQ, now to most the recent single we have just to bookend it in a nice way.”

The chords of one of their most recent offerings, “The Land of Milk and Honey,” emanated out and yet again reaffirmed that Rossdale and company were as solid as ever with their songwriting abilities.

We were treated to six more songs and an array of spectacular moments that included an intimate version of “Swallowed” performed acappella to the crowd, Rossdale running through the crowd and singing to fans in their seats during “Flowers on a Grave,” and the frontman playing “Glycerine” solo.

Bush’s performance ended with the whole band onstage giving their all for their beloved anthem, “Comedown.”

Witnessing Bush at the Kia Forum would’ve been more than enough of a reason to brave Los Angeles traffic but the mayhem that was about to unfold with Shinedown was something every true rock fan should experience for themselves.

The antics started to unfold as the band’s mascot, TV Guy, warmed up the crowd. All went still as a flurry of prominent television program segments played leading up to Shinedown taking the stage.

Lead vocalist Brent Smith took command of the Forum in a manner of seconds. From the first line of “Dance, Kid, Dance” he won the audience over with his powerful vocal performance and the strength of his stage presence.

And may I not fail to mention the rest of Shinedown’s line up, with guitarist, Zach Myers, bassist, Eric Bass, and drummer, Barry Kerch individually being spectacles in their own right. To say the energy was infectious would be an understatement – it was evident Shinedown fans were in for a helluva ride that night.

As the third song of the night, “Cut the Cord,” came to a close, Smith exclaimed to the audience, “Everyone, we’re in your house.

This is your night, this is your show, this is your city. This is our very first time playing the Forum.” The elated vocalist asked the audience to greet one another as it has been a long standing Shinedown tradition for Smith to have strangers unite over music.

The night took an emotional turn after a couple more songs had passed when Smith asked the audience to remember loved ones lost, to recall their presence and have faith they were there with us. Subsequently the band performed their song, “Three Six Five.” Scanning the faces in the crowd, it was evident how cathartic the moment was amongst those in attendance. And of course things didn’t stay quiet for long in true Shinedown fashion as they blasted into a high octane performance of “Enemies.”

Those lining the barricade of the B-Stage in the center of the Forum were treated to something truly special as the band congregated for a more intimate part of the performance. Shinedown played a four-song set on the B-Stage and interacted with the crowd by playfully reading signs, commentating on them, and engaging several members of the audience.

The remainder of the evening progressed with an onslaught of wonderful moments from the beautiful ballad that is Shinedown’s “A Symptom of Being Human,” to their rendition of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Simple Man,” and finally closing the night out with everyone singing “Second Chance” at the top of their lungs.

The culmination of Shinedown, Bush, and Morgan Wade led to a truly special night at the Kia Forum. I believe diversity of genres represented only further provided evidence of the power of music and its ability to break barriers and allow us to put our differences aside and gather for something far more powerful than any single one of us.

Shinedown not only provided a killer performance with unbridled energy paired with a production of insane visuals and pyrotechnics, they respected those that came before them with Bush and uplifted the next generation with Morgan Wade.

I highly recommend catching them the next time they’re in a city near you.

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by Highway One Photography

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