TONS Live kicked off its 2026 run at The Basement East, cementing itself as the launchpad for Nashville’s most exciting rising talent.
Singer-songwriter ALINA opened the night with a disarming eight-song set that masked her age. The 20-year-old Las Vegas native, currently studying songwriting at Belmont University, has already surpassed seven million Spotify streams of her breakout single “I Know, I Know, I Know,” and amassed over 145,000 followers on Instagram. Onstage, she was genuinely warm and unguarded, talking to the crowd between songs as if they were old friends.
She moved through highlights from her 2025 EP Catching Lightning with steady confidence — “Chain Reaction” set the tone early, its melodic hooks pulling the room in before the set had a chance to settle. For the second song, “Get A Grip,” she paused to share the story behind it, recounting a best friend who had seemingly ended their friendship — the kind of candid, between-song moment that makes a small-room show feel personal. “Nothing I Am” and “Second Guessing” showcased her ability to balance introspection with accessibility, each landing with a clarity that held the room still. A cover of The 1975’s “Somebody Else” landed with just the right amount of reverence, and she closed with “Don’t Be A Stranger,” leaving the audience wanting more.
Next up was Meadowglade, a young indie rock band from Nashville that is led by frontman and songwriter Luke Cooper, joined by Owen Keim on guitar, Justin Nasfell on drums, and Aidan Spiva on bass. The group’s origin story reads like a modern music industry fable — a snippet of their song “Magnolia” posted to TikTok caught fire and earned them a fanbase before they had a proper catalog.Their 30-minute set leaned into layered melodies and emotional instrumentation, the four-piece’s chemistry obvious from the first song. Cooper’s vulnerable lyricism anchored the performance, his voice cutting through the band’s layered arrangements with a quiet intensity. “Magnolia” arrived near the end of the set and drew the loudest response of their performance, the audience clearly familiar with every note. For the closer, Cooper opened up about growing up in a Christian household and grappling with faith as he got older, lending genuine weight to the final song. It was the kind of earnest, unguarded moment that makes a new band worth following.
Moody Joody closed the night with a set that shifted the room’s energy entirely. The Nashville-based synth-pop trio — vocalists Kaitie Forbes and Kayla Hall alongside producer Andrew Pacheco — have been building momentum since forming in 2020, earning recognition with their 2024 debut EP, Dream Girl, and landing major playlist support from Amazon and Spotify for their latest single, “Loretta’s Last Call.”From the opening notes of “Talk Me Down,” the trio delivered a high-energy, ’80s-tinged performance that had the crowd moving. Forbes and Hall played off each other’s vocal strengths throughout, their harmonies locking in tightly over Pacheco’s shimmering production. “The Heat” and “Velvet Connection” kept the momentum rolling with pulsing synths and infectious rhythm, while “Oops” offered a playful change of pace midway through. “Loretta’s Last Call” stood out as the set’s centerpiece — polished, confident, and catchy enough to justify the streaming numbers behind it. The trio saved an unreleased track, “Little Blue House,” for the finale, offering a preview of what’s ahead and closing the evening on a forward-looking note.
Presented by The Other Nashville Society and W Nashville, TONS Live continues to carve out vital space for the city’s non-country artists. The recurring series has championed everyone from indie-pop newcomers to genre-bending rock acts since TONS was founded in 2017, and the 2026 opener proved the mission is as necessary as ever. Between ALINA’s emotionally sharp songwriting, Meadowglade’s promising debut energy, and Moody Joody’s infectious stage command, the night made a convincing case that the other side of Nashville has plenty to say.MOODY JOODY
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