Rolling Stone’s Musician Show on Musicians: Recap

Alex Warren, Megan Moroney, Don Toliver and Malcolm Todd packed a full house Friday at Los Angeles’s United Theater on Broadway for a night of collaborative performances and candid conversations. rolling stoneMusicians on Musicians 2026 live event. The sold-out show was part of the latest edition of our Musicians on Musicians franchise, which since 2019 has brought together artists each year for a conversation about life, music and everything in between.

Moroney, who calls her blend of country and pop “emo-cowgirl”, and Warren, who blends pop, rock and folk into powerful, anthemic songs, were in first place. In a digital cover story ahead of the event, the Nashville-based artists explained rolling stone There are many similarities between them, from both scoring big hits on their debut albums – their five-time platinum “Tennessee Orange”, to their record-breaking “Ordinary”, to producing in different styles. He was open and vulnerable in that convo, the way he delivers his songs.

This year the duo released a studio album – Moroni Dropped. cloud 9 in February, and Warren’s wildchild Arrived in August – and got an even bigger audience: cloud 9 debuted at number one in board 200 and Top Country Albums charts. During this time, wildchild debuted at number one on the Top Album Sales and Vinyl Albums charts, and bowed at number two board 200.

Tolliver and Todd on stage

Anna Lee for Rolling Stone

Saturday night LiveJames Austin Johnson served as host and moderator. Johnson welcomed Moroni and Warren to the stage, pointing to their hit 2026 albums, saying, “These two are on somewhat of a hot streak.”

Warren discussed the personal nature of his songs, and said that he wrote “Simple” for his wife. “When I went to write that song, I thought, ‘I want to be able to say everything I felt and send her the song.’ …that was it for me, but then suddenly people are walking down the aisle [to it]Or it’s being played at a funeral. It’s great to have a song that can be played anywhere and anytime.”

Johnson, a Nashville native, pointed out how big country music is currently, and asked if it influenced Moroni to lean toward pop or country. Moroni said, “I’ve always tried not to focus too much on genres because I think there are so many sub-genres within country.” “I’m considered a country artist because most of my songs are country instruments, but my songwriting is my number one thing. So as it gets more popular, it’s just like, ‘Okay, it must be working out because I’ll just keep doing what I’m doing and stay in my lane.'”

Next, Moroni took the stage with musicians on acoustic guitar and percussion to perform the breakup anthem “Medicine”. “I see something cloud 9 Hoodies are in there,” she commented as she donned a bright pink guitar for her next song, which she wrote for her niece.

“It’s been really special hearing stories from my fans about how this song has helped them get through difficult times in life,” she said before performing “Beautiful Things.”

“I think we all go through times when we wish we didn’t have to do this. We go through situations where we say, ‘Why is this happening?’ And I just wanted to write a song that could maybe uplift anyone who felt that way.

They concluded with “6 Months Later” before Warren took the stage. They began with “Eternity” before segueing into “Fever Dream” and “Passenger”.

snlJames Austin Johnson interacted with the crowd and at one point broke his famous Trump impression

Anna Lee for Rolling Stone

“Okay, who said ‘ordinary’?” Warren joked, as many in the audience were screaming to hear his hit during the set. “I have a lot of good brother points — my sisters love Megan, but my wife is also a huge fan of Megan, and it would be really sick to be able to perform with Megan, so let’s do that,” he said, before Moroni joined him on stage to deliver a gorgeous duet rendition of the beloved song filled with cello and an intricate acoustic melody.

After a short intermission, Tolliver and Todd emerged on stage to thunderous applause, raising the decibel level in the room. Both the actors have seen a tremendous rise in their careers in the last year. Following the viral singles “Art House” and “Roommates” in 2023 and a tour with Omar Apollo the following year, Todd’s self-titled debut studio album in 2025 yielded his breakout hit “Chest Pain (I Love)”. The single earned him a feature with Tolliver, who sampled the track for his Top 20 hit “E85”. Todd’s follow-up album, do that again, Saw them leaning towards their so-called bedroom pop sound and the dynamic of their fan base. LP Nearing the release of Todd’s cute boy The mixtape track “Earrings” has enjoyed a second life in recent months.

“It’s great to have this early in your career,” Todd said of the collaboration with Tolliver. [get] The peer reviews of people who have been doing this longer than you are really important.”

For Tolliver’s part, the Houston native has been on the rise for years – he’ll be on his way to 2026 in extraordinary fashion. He staked his claim as a real hitmaker with 2024 hardstone psycho The single “Bandit” debuted at number three on the Billboard 200 chart and reached the top 40. After a quiet year, which included the birth of his son with partner Kali Uchis, Tolliver returned with a chart-topping album, octaneWhich puts “E85” on the starting track. (rolling stone The LP was recently tipped as a contender for Best Rap Album at next year’s Grammys.)

When discussing what he could learn from artists like fellow Houstonian Travis Scott (Tolliver appeared on his 2018 album), Astroworld) and Drake (he appeared twice Habibti (fomo)), Tolliver said, “I’ve really been studying these guys my entire career. So doing music with them these days is a breath of fresh air. But not only that, it’s always a learning experience. No matter how deep I get into it, it’s something I learn all the time.” “Every time I’m with Malcolm I learn something,” he said, gesturing to Todd.

When Johnson asked Todd if his relatively quick success surprised him, the singer said that although it was “definitely shocking”, his focus was on “what’s next”. “It was really cool,” he said. “But really I was just back on a hard path. Like I’m not going to hang my hat on this one song.”

Outside the historic United Theater

Anna Lee for Rolling Stone

His recent statement from the conversation was reiterated musicians on musicians cover story, and as the pairing ended, future collaborations were hinted at. “Man listen, me and Michael Finnah are crazy,” Tolliver said. He added, “It’s a beautiful story to tell that, you know, it all happened because of me using her energy. That’s the way things happen in the universe.” “Now we’ll make more songs here. It’s crazy.” Throughout the night, Johnson interacted with the crowd and at one point broke his famous Trump impression.

The night ended with performances from both artists. Todd appeared with his full band, opening with “Earrings” and moving into the equally emotional “4m 4m” from his debut mixtape. He wrapped it up with the sad “Chest Pain (I Love)”.

At the last show of the night, Tolliver’s set saw a crowd of fans flock to the stage, all of whom immediately took out their cell phones to document the star. The artist brought his own band and within moments the packed theater went wild octane hit “Body” and 2020’s “No Idea.” By the time Tolliver got Internet Money’s “Lemonade” – which he starred in with Gunna and Nav – fans were repeating this verse before it became a hit. love sick Deluxe Cut “No Pole.” When they slowed down the pace with Drake’s remix of Ella Langley’s massive “Chussin’ Texas”, the crowd went wild – and were even more fired up when Todd returned to join Tolliver for a live rendition of “E85”.

Musicians on Music is presented by Sonesta International Hotels, bringing fans closer to the artists and conversations shaping music today. Sonesta Travel Pass members receive access to the event at special member pricing, including premium seating and a special champagne toast to celebrate the evening.

As the presenting sponsor of The Rolling Stones’ Rock Tour in 2026, bringing live music to cities across America, Miller High Life now joins forces with The Rolling Stones for musicians as we bring these intimate conversations and collaborative performances to the stage.

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The 2027 Lexus TZ was designed for moments of connection and creates a place where people can reconnect with each other, themselves and the world around them. As a proud sponsor of Musicians at Musicians, Lexus joins Rolling Stone in celebrating the conversations and connections that move music and culture forward in content and live moments.

As the night ended with some of the acts’ most ardent fans, the 2026 installment rolling stoneComposers ended up being musicians. And while audiences got a chance to see some of today’s top acts up close, it was also a chance for the artists to enjoy a moment in between as their careers progressed. As Warren said earlier in the evening, “Growing up, we always dreamed of being musicians, and the fact that we’ve been able to have even an ounce of the success that we’re having today is really cool.”

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