Lia Pappas-Kemps and Rachel Bobbitt Dazzle D.C. in Co-Headlining Show
Washington, D.C. - May 31, 2026
Never has an evening of more heavenly vocals befallen Washington, D.C. than when Lia Pappas-Kemps and Rachel Bobbitt graced the stage of Songbyrd Music House Sunday night.
The Torontonians’ stop in The District marked the half-way point of their co-headlining tour, which is bringing the singer-songwriters’ compatible serenades to a host of cities in eastern North America. Pappas-Kemps and Bobbitt’s penchant for light indie rock — both harnessing voices that careen with grace while often backed by imaginative instrumentals — made for a cohesive concert while still allowing each artists’ distinctions to shine.
Washington’s own Pinky Lemon opened the show with a set dabbling in every flavor of rock, energizing the crowd before Pappas-Kemps made her way onstage. Awash in red and blue lights, the 22-year-old singer opened with “Just The Thought” followed by “Switchblade,” two dreamy indie rock tracks from 2024’s Gleam. Her playful inflections were perhaps more crisp live than on record, bringing a matured sense of musicianship to the performance, reminiscent of her bolstered confidence on 2026’s Winged.
Speaking of said new album — which dropped in March — Pappas-Kemps’ impassioned renditions of tracks from Winged were certainly highlights of the night. During the angsty “Towers,” she traded the digital, fuzzy bridge on the record for a more organic breakdown, showcasing her band and featuring a propulsive guitar solo. She warbled with closed eyes and a scrunched face during the tension-building “Two-Step,” as if mentally conjuring the image of an ill-fated night at the bar with a manipulative ex-lover. Of course, she also checked in with the audience during the chorus, smiling knowingly while singing, “As you watched your songbird sing a tune,” on the stage of Songbyrd.
Gently evocative harmonies are a hallmark of Pappas-Kemps’ music, and live performances of songs like “Eight Chambers” and “Orchid” filled the 3,000-square-foot venue with ultra-satisfying sonics. Other serene tracks in her discography resulted in mesmerizing live moments. A hush fell over the room when the melancholic strum of “Ill-Intentions” reverberated, joined only by Pappas-Kemps’ easy alto and barely-audible foot taps until instrumental layers slowly accumulated starting in the chorus.
Even amidst technical difficulties like her guitar strap breaking and adverse “tuning chronicles,” as she joked, Pappas-Kemps carried a certain cheery yet relaxed demeanor. When she neared the end of her set, she shared how “special” it felt to embark on her first ever tour and warned the crowd to prepare to be “blown away” by Bobbitt.
As if on cue, Bobbitt joined the audience to record Pappas-Kemps’ final song, “A Thousand Times Over.” The last track on her self-released debut, it was an apt way to close her portion of the evening. Bombastic drums and loud guitar and bass lines carried the tune out, with Pappas-Kemps’ voice rising to match the increasingly dense sonic environment.
Relaxed indie rock music — including Wednesday’s “Wound Up Here (By Holdin On)” — poured out of the house speakers while the changing of the headline guard occured. When Bobbitt emerged in polka-dotted garb, an ethereal sample of her layered lilting floated through the room like a one-woman choir, luring the crowd into her set before transitioning into “Hush.” Bobbitt’s voice was hypnotically resonant, lyrics like, “To be the one left out searching / Is to be forever caught yearning,” landing firmly over lush synths and trippy sampler interjections.
Joining her on guitar was long-time collaborator Justice Der, who, besides populating the set with atmospheric sound effects, delivered a cathartic solo on “More.” Bobbitt’s performance of the 2022 track also culminated in her taking the final chorus up the octave, not only making for a powerful musical moment, but also displaying her impressive range. A crowd member even shouted, “Your voice is angelic,” at one point, to which Bobbitt responded, “You guys are so kind and respectful, and I say that as a Canadian.”
Aside from sharing that her main perception of D.C. came from “Veep” — because who wouldn’t be charmed by Julia Louis-Dreyfus’s portrayal of an eccentric vice president — Bobbitt also provided insight into her debut studio album, Swimming Towards The Sand, which dropped in October. After explaining the record’s aquatic imagery is tied to her childhood in Nova Scotia, she dove into “Remember” and “I Want It All,” two hazy, airy tracks that moved Bobbitt to close her eyes while singing.
Her setlist also included the newly-released single “Where Do You Wanna Be” and unreleased “Crosses.”
Similar to Pappas-Kemps, Bobbitt gave high praise to her co-headliner — predicting it will be “so expensive” to see her fellow Torontonian live one day — and reflected on her excitement to headline in Washington for the first time.
The night of musical therapy ended with Bobbitt’s cover of “Love More” by Sharon Van Etten. With a droning synth and balladic message to, well, “love more,” Bobbitt exited the stage. Yet, between two stunning vocal showcases and truth bombs in the form of poetic lyricism, a sense of awe lingered in the air as fans filed out of Songbyrd and into the clutches of a warm late spring evening.