Last night, at CFG Bank Arena in Baltimore, Maryland, Billy Strings hosted a He-Man-themed evening. Strings dressed up as He-Man, while the rest of his band and the special guests who joined him onstage wore other Masters of the Universe costumes. His band included Alwyn Robinson, Jimmy Olson, Royal Masat, Jarrod Walker, and Chris Sterr.
Guests Mary Tuttle and Sierra Hull also performed several songs. The night's setlist was designed to honor the strange and enduring legacy of the animated '80s show. The evening began with a few theme songs, including "He-Man and the Masters of the Universe Theme," "Eternia Theme (Prince Adam Theme Song)," and "Masters of the Universe Theme." Then came more modern covers that addressed themes and memes.
They performed 4 Non Blondes' "What's Up?," a nod to the He-Man x 4 Non Blondes meme. Later, they performed "The Power" by Snap!, Slayer's "Skeletons of Society," "My Hero" by Foo Fighters, and Sheryl Crow's "Strong Enough." Following the show, Strings posted a lovely message on his Instagram Stories about how the show came together and how his late mother, Debra, whose birthday was Oct. 31, would have loved it all: Thanks for coming out to the Halloween shows! I just fell in love with Masters of the universe a few months ago and started binging a bunch of the old cartoons.
I had no idea what we were gonna do for Halloween this year but then I just came across it after never really knowing what it was about. I immediately went down the rabbit hole and started arranging some of the musical themes for guitars and I wrote a couple songs (prince adam and Teela's quest) for the show. I thought of some of my old musician friends from traverse city who I haven't seen in a long time and invited them.
Chris Sterr and Jimmy Olson absolutely killed it! They put in the work and I'm so grateful. It was awesome to jam with them again.
And I can't say enough about how great it was to play with Molly and Sierra. I'm so stoked they made it too! And the fellers in my band worked their tails off on all the material.
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