ALEXANDRA ALCALA / ASST. A&C EDITOR

On Saturday, Sept. 14, artist Andrew John Hozier-Byrn, who goes by Hozier, performed at the North Island Credit Union Amphitheater in San Diego. He is recognized for songs such as  “Take Me To Church” and “Too Sweet.” 

These two songs are amongst some of his biggest hits. “Take Me To Church” gained popularity on apps such as  Vine and Tumblr. The song was first uploaded to streaming platforms in 2013. Currently, it has over two billion plays on Spotify, and is listened to over one million times every day. This makes it his current most popular song. 

His newest release, “Too Sweet,” is his second most popular song, with  just under one billion streams on Spotify and over three million daily streams. Many USD students are part of Hozier’s audience and went to his last concert.

“I attended this concert because Hozier is definitely my favorite artist,” USD sophomore Sophia Valencia said. “I greatly admire and enjoy his music, lyrics and singing. He’s the only musician from whom I love every song. I would love to go to another one of his concerts.” 

Many USD students were in attendance. Whether they were new listeners or fans from the beginning, this was a concert to remember.

“Hozier is an artist that I’ve been listening to for years,” sophomore Alex Hamilton said. “Attending the concert and seeing the different ways he performs each song feels like he gives them different meaning than what they give off when just listening to a record version. He also adds great animation and film to his concerts that further push the meaning of each song. I’ve attended two of his concerts so far, and I would definitely go again.” 

Students, Valencia and Hamilton, agree that one of the most remarkable things about Hozier’s songs and performances are the deeper lyrical messages within them. 

“Not only is his music enjoyable to listen to and catchy, it’s also incredibly moving and complex with great lyricism,” Valencia said. 

Because of this, many students find his work important to the changing world. Hamilton elaborated on these topics that he brings to the forefront in his lyrics.

“A  highlight  of his concert was  not just his  performances, but the  speeches he included when a song related to a sensitive topic,” Hamilton said. “He spoke out about different civil rights topics, ranging from slavery and the civil rights movement to LGBTQ+ rights to even the current Israeli-Hamas conflict. His music has a lot of deeper messages regarding types of relationships, political and social issues or movements and a variety of other experiences one may have in their life.” 

Besides the complexity of Hozier’s songs, the USD students who attended the concert also appreciated how close they were able to get to the stage when listening to their most anticipated songs.

 “I think a general highlight was how close we got. I ended up in the third row from the barricade in the middle. Very exciting,” Valencia said. “A more specific highlight is when he played ‘Abstract (Psychopomp)’ which is one of my  favorite  songs.”

USD sophomore Julianna Ramirez also shared some of her favorite moments at the concert. 

“I attended the concert because I really love Hozier’s music, and I’ve loved it for a long time,” Ramirez said.  “I also wanted to attend because some of my friends were going, and I wanted to see more live music this year. I think a highlight was just seeing everyone really getting into the music and having a good time. I would definitely attend one of his concerts again.”

For many USD students, the concert was a fun chance to enjoy live music and to see one of their favorite artists. Because San Diego is a large hub for diverse styles of music, many more fun performances are to come. Hozier is just an example of big artists that visit San Diego every year to perform a concert or be part of a music festival. 

“I’ve grown up in San Diego and this is the only place I’ve attended  concerts, so maybe I am a little biased, but I would say going to concerts is something I enjoy here. We  have a lot of venues close  by and  can range from pretty small to very large. I think it helps that a lot of musicians on tour  have  a show  here or close by.”

This recent performance by Hozier drew in many USD students who wanted the chance to see him in the flesh. Because of his music, his lyrics and his focus on topics that are important to many, he has grown to have an appreciative fan base.

Hozier performing at North Island Credit Union on Saturday. Photo courtesy of Alexandra Hamilton