LUKAS GRAHAM IN CONCERT:
Danish soul-pop quartet Lukas Graham has become a hit on both sides of the Atlantic thanks to a string of catchy-as-heck anthems that combine radio-ready hooks with a bit of edge courtesy of the band's hard-knocks background. They call their accessible yet gritty sound "ghetto-pop", and it's a product of their upbringing in a marginalized, rough-and-tumble Copenhagen neighborhood. The foursome may have seen hard times, but you'd never know it at their live shows, where they crackle with celebratory energy and treat ticket buyers to an all-out pop party. Frontman Lukas Graham Forchhammer can seriously belt, and he always wears his heart on his sleeveódespite the fact that he usually performs shirtless. His emotional vocals on soaring hits like "7 Years" and "Mama Said" are matched at every turn by the rest of the band and their energetic playing, making for an upbeat concert experience that always ends on a high note.
BACKGROUND SNAPSHOT:
Lukas Graham formed in Copenhagen in late 2011 and got their start uploading videos of self-recorded tunes to YouTube and Facebook. The clips were shared widely among their friends in Denmark, and before long the band boasted several hundred thousand views and a growing reputation in the Copenhagen underground. Their 2011 debut single "Ordinary Things" peaked at No. 2 on the Danish charts, leading to a sold-out tour despite the fact that they hadn't even released an album. They rectified that in 2012 with their self-titled debut, a massive hit that topped Danish charts and earned them fans across Europe thanks to popular singles like "Drunk in the Morning" and "Better Than Yourself (Criminal Mind Pt. 2)". Warner Bros. Records snatched them up in 2013, and in 2015 Lukas Graham dropped their sophomore album Lukas Graham (Blue Album) to a No. 3 spot on the US Billboard 200. They're already massive stars in their native Denmark, and with undeniable singles like "7 Years" earning them new fans by the minute, it's only a matter of time before their fame goes global.