the Corrs, Natalie Imbruglia, Toni Childs + Germein
The very first time I was on tour with all girl performers, and they were all wonderful to hang out with and so talented. This photo was taken in Christchurch, New Zealand – the last gig of the tour. We would go on to have a bang up after party where everyone let their hair down, and man o man. Hahahaaa!
Reviews
First Show @ Perth RAC Arena – 25/10/2023
Photos By Stu McKay Photography
Review By Sheldon Ang Click here for full Review
A few minutes before twilight, Toni Childs, an Emmy winner, three-time Grammy nominee and now a Byron Bay resident made herself at home by sitting the front centre of the stage. Her vocal engine was sparked by the smash hit I’ve Got To Go Now. Her bluesy, soulful vocals driven by those powerful grinding and grilling falsetto drew immediate reaction with utter silence among the audience. It was a shock and awe invasion, as she painfully lyrically narrated about a wife leaving her husband with her kids after a series of domestic violence through those rich throaty, funnelling personification. Stop Your Fussin’ followed as she stood in bare feet and greeted her band members, followed by House of Hope and Don’t Walk Away. Childs took to the floor, greeting the audience while firing her thunder struck vocals. The power, emotion and honesty were catapulting, drawing the audience closer to the stages through those distinctive voice that can only be Toni’s. Toni Childs need to tour across Australia. She, herself was worth of the money spent.
Second Show @ Sandstone Point Hotel – 28/10/2023
Photos By Elizabeth Sharpe @ummagummamumma
Review By Tracey Moyle – Music Maven Events Click here for full Review
Emmy award winning artist Toni Childs took to the stage without fuss or fanfare, taking a ten-minute technical delay in her stride, as they continued with a sound check. Sitting perched at the front of the stage, she took a photo of the crowd with her phone, gave her guitarist a hug and waited patiently for the sound issues to be sorted out. Finally, with her guitarist sitting by her side, she introduced the band and flowed skilfully and gracefully, opening up into her 1991 hit I’ve Got To Go Now.
Conscious of the intensity of the Queensland afternoon sun, the artist looked absolutely glamorous, happy and comfortable, donned in her wide-brimmed hat and stylish sunglasses, looking completely at home and comfortable in front of her QLD fans.Taking advantage of the photographers in the photo pit in front of the stage, she had two willing participants assist her and took her shoes off, ready to jump up and dance on stage. Barefoot and full of energy, she flowed into her hit Stop Your Fussin, her vocals still as strong in 2023 as they were in 1988.
Toni continued with a dynamic elegance through House Of Hope and lifted the energy up more than a few notches on stage, and throughout the venue, with popular hit Don’t Walk Away. Childs confirmed the decades haven’t changed a thing, bouncing around the stage with a vibrant energy, bringing new music, including her new song Lift, to the fans. Childs showing fans her passion for music and her internal fire are still alive decades after her 1988 debut. Dramatic vocals, bring out a certain vulnerability in her music. Her tracks are a melding pot of intense storytelling backed by hauntingly powerful vocals.
Taking out the set back to where she started, seated perched, on the front of the stage, she performed I Believe In You, singing directly to the crowd. She moved down into the barrier singing alongside her fans, joining in on the loving energy that only music can produce. Back on stage, Toni closed her Sandstone Point performance looking glamorous, confident, happy, and relaxed.
Third Show @ Sydney Qudos Bank Arena 29/10/23 A Very Big Birthday Party!
Celebrating my birthday on the road is another first!! You could say, I had a very big party!! Click to hear 21,000 people sing Happy Birthday to me… hehe!!
Review By Peter Gray
Photograph By Daniel Farr Click here for full Review
After Germein proved they have the vocals and charm to hold an arena’s attention with a brief set, Toni Childs continued the rock-based vibe, walking on stage barefoot, announcing it was her birthday (so, you just know the crowd is serenading her later), quietly sitting down and after talking of how she’ll be “Starting with the old stuff and then moving to the new stuff”, she kicked off with her 1991 Top 5 ARIA hit “I’ve Got To Go Now”. Childs, whose distinguished voice silenced the crowd when it was on display, continued her walk down memory lane with “Stop Your Fussin’”, before she introduced her new music, which maintained her funk-meets-rock sound, but incorporated an almost sensory-like experience as she invited Sydney to close their eyes and give into weightlessness.
Very much taking the audience on a journey through time with her evolving sound, Childs finished out by affirming to the audience – and coming off stage to interact directly with her fans – with the lyrics “You are beautiful. You are gorgeous”, from “I Believe In You”. Given the reaction, it’s safe to say the crowd felt the same affirmations should be relayed to the Hawaiian-turned-Byron Bay chanteuse.
Fourth Show @ Newcastle Entertainment Centre 31/10/23
The powerhouse that is Toni Childs, her vocals as strong as ever as she belted out hit after hit, including ‘Stop Your Fussin”, ‘Don’t Walk Away’, ‘House Of Hope’ and ‘I’ve Got To Go Now’. Her connection made all the more stronger as Toni explained she wanted to “sing for us” as she battled through some technical issues. Proving that age and time mean nothing when you possess pure talent, Toni belted out her newest song yet to be released ‘Lift’. Then much to the delight of fans the woman who is arguably one of the best female solo vocalists ever, then made her way into the middle of those seated centre stage to get up close to those who adoringly sang along with ‘I Believe In You. (Another song yet to be released)
Fifth Show @ Adelaide Entertainment Centre 02/11/23
Photographers: Peter Pap @ Hi Fi Way
and Marcus Shamence!!
Review By Nicole Jobes Click here for full Review
Opening her set with the determined announcement that she is here with her super power to “Pollinate with love”, Toni Childs tells us all “we’re starting with the old stuff and then we’re moving to the new stuff”. And so with that cleared up she begins her set with her 1991 Australian hit ‘I’ve Got to Go Now’. Sitting centre stage, surrounded by her five-piece band, emotively singing the song whilst casually taking off her shoes sets the scene for what’s to come.
‘Stop Your Fussin” is up next, co-written with David Ricketts, the single hales from Child’s debut album ‘Union’, the song keeps you moving & your foot tapping with the African-influenced percussion rhythmically backing the lyrics.
Dancing across stage bare foot, she closes out ‘the old stuff’ with one of her best known songs ‘Don’t Walk Away’. “Are you ready?” Toni teases as she announces we’re moving onto “the new stuff”. New it certainly is, taking on a totally different vibe for the second half of the set.
‘Lift’ cements that new feel and brings with it a fresh sound, a sound that follows through to ‘I Believe in You’. Toni offered a unique experience to fans tonight whilst moving through the crowd singing energetically, she singles out individuals whilst highlighting her powerful lyrics, “I see you, you are beautiful, you are gorgeous” . With everyone up on their feet singing along, Toni glides back onto stage, welcomes her band to join her and take a bow. Tonight, she declared she was going to use her super power, and she did. Using the warmth and depth of her voice, we moved tonight from abuse to empowerment.
Sixth Show @ Launceston UTAS Stadium 04/11/23
“Well, Aloha!” says Toni Childs as she takes a seat at the edge of the stage. “First, we are going to play some really old shit from thirty-friggen-years-ago. We are going to relive the past with little morsels of memory chocolates to taste and then the second half is for the here and now and future,” she says.
Childs unleashes her powerful, booming voice with soulful, bluesy, and raw lyrics delivered with a rough-edged vocal. The strong emotion in her music resonates with her audience as she conjures up a sense of nostalgia with her blast from the past hits from the ‘80s and ‘90s, including House Of Hope, Don’t Walk Away and Stop Your Fussin’.
She stands up as her full band joins in for her energetic and fresh new material and the audience claps along to the unreleased music. “That’s the most I’ve worn shoes in a show, but now I need to take them off to feel more grounded,” she says. The security guard helps her remove her boots so she can move around the stage and roam around the floor area more freely for Because You’re Beautiful. She leaves us with a heartfelt message to shine on, before she takes a final bow with her band and crew.
Seventh Show @ Rod Laver Arena 06/11/23
Photos By by Nathan Goldsworthy Odin Imaging
Review By Silver Tiger Media Click here to read another review
American-born singer-songwriter, Toni Childs. Toni came out on stage to a quiet reception from the audience, but then proceeded to completely blow everyone out of the water with her distinct sound and powerhouse vocals singing one of her biggest hits, I’ve Got To Go Now. Despite the years gone by and her age, not only does she look amazing, but her pipes are still absolutely incredible and they never faltered once. Toni sang a few of her other older hits including Stop Your Fussin’ and Don’t Walk Away, which had the audience well and truly eating out of her hand. As she ventured into some of her newer material, the audience were thoroughly enjoying themselves, and even more so when she came down into the crowd for her final song. Toni ventured through the audience shaking hands as she delivered her final song which was full of hope, encouragement, and reminding people that they are beautiful, intelligent and worthy.
Eighth Show @ Auckland New Zealand Sparks Arena 09/11/23
Spark Arena was filling up fast, many hurrying to their seats in order to get settled in before the legend that is Toni Childs arrived. Accompanied by a five piece all male band, Toni Childs looked positively ethereal as she casually strolled out in black and white bell-bottom styled pants and black top, long hair cascading down the back of her shoulders.
Now sixty-six, Childs has lost absolutely none of that spectacular intensity. Taking a seat at the edge of the stage, she instantly connected with each and every person in the room. Dropping ‘Stop Your Fussin’ within the first couple of songs, Childs easily had the crowd eating out of the palm of her hand.
With a voice that was absolutely on point, that sumptuous husky undertone that she is well known for, moved through the room intoxicating all, Childs by this point barefoot, her band seamlessly accompanying her as she took one and all through a musical journey that should have been much longer.
Bringing nostalgia, blues and a vivid sense of self, Childs wowed one and all, especially when she moved into her last track ‘I Believe in You’; leaving the stage, Childs picked her way through the front rows, a young girl in yellow catching her eye. Shy at first, Childs soon had her dancing for joy in front of her, the captivating moment bringing a smile to everyone’s faces. Moving towards a gentleman sitting in the middle of the isle, Childs sat down as she serenaded him, her words sang with such genuine warmth that he visibly melted in his seat.
Returning to the front, Childs invited her band to stand by her side as they took a sweeping bow, many in the audience jumping to their feet to applaud them, before Childs playfully bunny-hopped off behind the curtains. Headline show? Yes please!