Live Review & Gallery: Role Model Brings Kansas Anymore to Life at Sydney’s Enmore Theatre 6.02.205

Instagram has been buzzing in anticipation of Role Model‘s (Tucker Harrington Pillsbury) Australian shows. The artist has brought his No Place Like Home World Tour to Sydney’s iconic Enmore Theatre tonight. The buzz isn’t just hype—it’s been building ever since Kansas Anymore dropped. With over 60 million global streams and counting, the album blends folk warmth with confessional, heart-on-sleeve lyricism. Kansas Anymore takes its name from The Wizard of Oz, but this isn’t a tale of technicolour fantasy or yellow brick road escapism. The album, shaped by the fallout of Role Model’s breakup with Instagram star Emma Chamberlain, turns grief into something tender and raw—melancholy, yes, but also strangely buoyant. It’s the soundtrack of a man stitching himself back together after love falls apart.

His single, ‘Deeply Still In Love,’ made waves on Jimmy Kimmel Live! recently, adding fuel to the fire. The track, with over 16 million streams and 371 million TikTok views across 40,000+ fan creations, has transformed into an anthem for longing and late-night feels. So tonight’s electric anticipation is no surprise.

The Enmore is a sea of cowboy hats and boots—a mix of indie cool and country nostalgia. Opening for Role Model tonight is Medium Build (Nicholas Carpenter) He strides onto the stage like a tradie who’s just wandered in from Bunnings—shorts, fluoro top, and the kind of nonchalance that feels both deliberate and accidental. It’s a playful nod to the Australian archetype. The crowd quickly takes to him, begging for a shoey like they’re testing how far his chill Aussie vibe will stretch. Grinning, he downs the shoe, promising to finish his set in a dodgy Australian accent.

The playlist between the acts tonight is heavily weighted towards the young, female popstars who currently reign over downloads and Grammy Awards-Billie Eilish, Clairo and Chappell Roan dominate, with each song inspiring a hearty singalong. The crowd erupts the moment Role Model strides on stage, their thunderous reception crashing like waves against the walls of the venue. There’s a beat—just a second—where he pauses, head slightly tilted, taking it all in like he’s clicking his heels and landing right where he’s meant to be. Back in Kansas, but not the one from the movie—this Kansas is built from broken love and the kind of warmth you reach for when you’ve got no map.

True to form, at one stage he introduces himself as Sabrina Carpenter and no sooner do the words leave his mouth than the crowd erupts into a chaotic singalong of her hit ‘Espresso,’ carrying it for several verses before he’s allowed to reclaim the stage. Later, he rebrands himself as Clairo, and the audience drinks it in like gospel. Various items of clothing are thrown on stage for him. A denim jacket on which someone has carefully embroidered an image of his face grabs his attention and he seems genuinely touched by the gift. The night’s highlight for me comes in the form of ‘The Dinner,’ a moment of collective catharsis as the audience bellows the chorus with reckless abandon. Watching this from the back, I can’t help but notice his resemblance to a young Paul McCartney—doe-eyed, magnetic, radiating effortless cool. It’s not just the looks, though. The reaction he pulls from the crowd feels eerily familiar to the frenzy of Beatlemania, albeit with TikTok-literate edge and Gen Z charm.

Role Model will play Melbourne and Adelaide next and will perform at the Party in the Paddock in Tasmania. Head over HERE for ticketing information.