Mon Rovia and Ryman at First Avenue: A Place to Gather
The evening opened with Ryman, a young troubadour armed with just an acoustic guitar and the kind of raw sincerity that silences a crowd. A Nashville native, freshly out of school and already chasing his music full-time, Ryman seemed both humbled and quietly astonished to find himself center stage at the iconic First Avenue. Between songs, he shared tender anecdotes about old friends and newfound love, his storytelling as endearing as his melodies.
His recent single, “Kiss My Face,” a track inspired by his girlfriend—who doodles his set lists, stars in his videos, and was spotted running the merch table—drew smiles across the room. There’s something magnetic about watching someone so early in their journey already find that emotional wavelength with an audience. His songs feel handwritten, unguarded, and deeply human, proof that honesty still has a place in the noise of modern music. Ryman was a perfect choice as a opener for Mon Rovîa’s show. The audience’s hearts were open and spirits lighter, ready to dive deeper into the beauty and community of the evening.
Then came Mon Rovia, greeted by applause that rippled through the packed venue. The night opened quietly, then complicated itself beautifully. Mon Rovîa walked onstage like someone who had already seen too much to pretend nothing matters, yet still believed everything could. His latest tour set-list (featuring favorites like “Outlaw for Your Love,” “Bone,” “Garden Gate,” “To Watch the World Spin Without You,” “Whose Face Am I,” and “Crooked the Road”) maps a songwriter in dialogue with himself and the world. What a gift to be a poet who can also write to music that connects people around the world.
From the opening chords of “Outlaw for Your Love,” the room exhaled. The familiar fold of somber folk and sway gave way to songs like “Garden Gate” and “To Watch the World Spin Without You,” which refused to let the spin go unnoticed. Mon’s voice carried a gentle gravitas, a storyteller’s calm worn like a well-worn coat. During “Whose Face Am I,” the song paused only for the moment to feel itself, and the audience leaned in, learning something about ourselves in the process.
Between songs, he spoke about the creative process, the challenge of staying vulnerable, and the beauty of building community through art. Each track was a reminder of how music can both soothe and stir, how one voice on a stage can feel like the echo of everyone’s own inner story. I found myself looking around the room several times. In between songs Mon would often speak words of togetherness and hope. At one point I recall a message that all we have left are words. The sentiment being that without words and the ability to communicate clearly, we are left with physical disputes, which we shouldn’t resort to. How lucky to have the ability to speak, and learn and share? Looking around I felt like I was amongst friends. Hands placed on hearts, an arm around a loved one, eyes closed to simply left the music pour over our souls - the glow of hope filled the room.
Halfway through the set, the tempo shifted: “Crooked the Road” brought a message that shook off the earlier introspection. The band responded, swelling the sound, layering instruments until the room was vibrating. The encore arrived like an inevitable truth, the kind of song that nears you quietly, then sweeps you off your feet. In that final stretch, Mon Rovîa seemed less like a solo artist and more like a conductor of collective catharsis.
Mon Rovîa doesn’t simply stand onstage and perform — he invites you into his liminal spaces, the in-between where loss meets hope, and silence meets song. In Minneapolis, he found an audience willing to meet him there, ready to sway rather than shout, to listen rather than distract. It’s the sign of an artist whose intimacy doesn’t mean smallness, rather it means depth. And if this tour is anything like the music, it’s far less about reaching a destination, and far more about taking the journey together.
Mon doesn’t just perform; he connects. The tour is titled, “A Place To Gather,” and that’s exactly what was delivered.
