Review by Katrina Gelety; Photos by Joe Horridge

A stormy afternoon didn’t stop Pittsburgh from showing up and showing out for Louis Tomlinson’s How Did We Get Here? World Tour at Stage AE on July 10, 2026. It was the first opportunity I had to see Louis Tomlinson perform live since I saw One Direction play Heinz Field in 2015. I was buzzing with anticipation and thrilled the earlier weather didn’t affect the show.

Tomlinson took the stage to his song “Lemonade,” and it was the perfect opening song. The groovy bass got the packed audience dancing uncontrollably, and the gang vocals had everyone singing along. This energy continued throughout the set, especially when Tomlinson performed his song “Out of My System.” The entire crowd was jumping up and down to the beat of the song.

“Defenceless” was an acoustic moment which gave the audience a rest to preserve some energy but did not give anyone’s vocals a rest as Tomlinson had the crowd sing the last chorus on their own, creating a beautiful moment which gave me chills. The belts from the audience continued into the next song in the set which was One Direction’s “Night Changes.” It felt beautifully nostalgic to get to hear Louis sing this song again after 11 years. Tomlinson performed the song at the end of the stage’s runway which helped bring a sense of togetherness among the crowd. 

One of my favorite parts of the show was Tomlinson’s interactions with the audience. He took several moments to thank everyone in attendance for coming despite the weather and shared that he could not do what he does without everyone who came out to support him. He also takes moments throughout each song to interact one-on-one with fans. As the instrumentals play, you will find Tomlinson waving to a specific person in the crowd or reacting to a sign someone is holding up. A moment that stood out to me was when Tomlinson performed “Sunflowers.” Two fans held sunflowers up in the air while dancing, and Tomlinson look truly touched by the moment and kept pointing and waving to the fans. These little gestures make everyone in the crowd feel like they are seen. 

Right before Tomlinson came back out onstage for the encore, the audience started to sing One Direction’s “No Control” on their own. When he came back out, fans began asking Tomlinson to perform the One Direction hit. Tomlinson made me laugh out loud by saying “You’s already sang it,” followed by “Peer pressure will do nothing,” before kicking off the next song of the encore.

I was extremely impressed with how long Tomlinson played for. His set was over an hour and a half long, and I appreciated that he wanted to make sure concert-goers got as much out of their money as possible. Performing 24 songs can’t be a small feat, but Tomlinson and band made it look effortless. 

I had the best night at the How Did We Get Here? Tour. I met up with a longtime friend who happened to also be attending the show. We also bumped into a friend that we hadn’t seen since graduating high school. One of the perks of seeing an artist live that has been a part of your life for 10+ years is that you get to reconnect with people while attending the show. Any chance I have to see Louis Tomlinson live I will be taking, and I highly recommend attending a show if you have the opportunity!