Nostalgia is both a good and bad feeling. There’s that longing for the past, but there’s also that fulfillment when it is presented to you in some way in the present. The latter is the case with the Pop 2000 Tour – a show hosted by NSYNC’s Chris Kirkpatrick featuring O-Town, Ryan Cabrera, and LFO’s Brad Fischetti – that has been touring the country for the last few years.
The trek stopped at a saloon-type bar in Buda, Texas, on Saturday (July 16) night. Due to high temperatures in Texas in the middle of the summer, the show was moved indoors. However, the amount of people stuffed inside the bar made for a sauna-like environment. Despite the heat, all the acts – sweat and all – delivered a fun night of old and new hits, dancing, and memories.
O-Town headlined the show mixing songs from their discography with cool medleys of other songs from the 2000s and today. Apart from doing some of their earliest cuts such as ‘Liquid Dreams’ and ‘We Fit Together,’ they also paid homage to arguably the biggest boy band of all time NSYNC. They did ‘It’s Gonna Be Me’ and convinced Kirkpatrick to join them for the last bit of ‘Bye, Bye, Bye’ – which set the room off with roars from the mostly-female audience.
LFO’s sole surviving member, Brad Fischetti, also took part in the show during O-Town’s set. With the help of the guys, he performed some of LFO’s biggest hits such as ‘Girl On TV’ and ‘Summer Girls.’ It was an emotional moment as he dedicated the performance to Rich Cronin and Devin Lima – both passed away from cancer in 2010 and 2018 respectively.
Ryan Cabrera kicked off the show earlier in the night with an acoustic set. He took everyone down memory lane with songs such as ‘True’ and ‘On The Way Down’ from his 2004 debut album Take It All Away. Just like O-Town, he also did a medley of his own to pay ode to other songs from the 2000s such as the Goo Goo Dolls’ ‘Slide’ and Third Eye Blind’s ‘Semi-Charmed Life.’
O-Town closed out the boy band extravaganza with their biggest hit, 2001’s ‘All Or Nothing.’
If you want to have a good night out and go back in time, this show is definitely for you. There is something about 2000s music that is special. Whether it be the catchy tunes, choreographed moves, or easy-to-participate singalongs, there is something for everyone to enjoy.
The Pop 2000 Tour continues through early October with David Cook and Sugar Ray’s Mark McGrath also appearing at select dates. You can find all the information on the tour’s official website.
