Jess Nelson On July 20, 2026, Hilary Duff headlined Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colorado, with La Roux and Jade LeMac opening. Some shows you cover, and some shows you feel in your whole chest, and this one was very much the latter. Getting to watch Hilary Duff live, at Red Rocks of all places, was the kind of full-circle moment that doesn’t come around often, the closest thing to stepping back into childhood while still standing fully in the present.
Jade LeMac
Jade LeMac opened the night, and she was an absolute joy to watch. She’s got this natural charisma onstage, warm and magnetic in a way that pulled the crowd in immediately. I’d caught glimpses of her on my TikTok feed before and had been hoping for a chance to see her live, and her voice more than lived up to it, rich and playful, clearly having as much fun up there as the crowd was having watching her. The night gave me an unexpected bonus too: after her set, she came out and lingered right behind where I was sitting, since one of her bandmate’s parents happened to be seated nearby. Getting to meet her and grab a photo in that completely unplanned moment made the whole evening feel a little more magical before Hilary even took the stage.
La Roux
One of the best surprises of the night came before I even realized it was happening. I didn’t know going in that I already knew a La Roux song, and the second “Bulletproof” kicked in, that flicker of recognition hit, the kind that makes a crowd’s energy jump a notch collectively. Her sound sits a little outside my usual rotation, that shimmering, seventies-tinged synth-pop territory, but the set won me over completely, especially once she started talking to the crowd between songs. Her accent alone had the whole amphitheater charmed. At one point she admitted the altitude was getting to her and asked the crowd to cheer her on right as she hit a specific high note, just to help push her through it. It was such a small, funny, human moment, and Red Rocks answered with everything it had.
Photos Courtesy of 42WEST
Hilary Duff
There aren’t really words that do this one justice, but I’ll try. This was a childhood dream fulfilled in real time. Hilary Duff is everything and more live, and getting to scream-sing the songs I grew up on, “Wake Up,” “Come Clean,” “So Yesterday,” “What Dreams Are Made Of,” “Fly,” and so many others, felt almost surreal, like being handed back a piece of my own childhood for two hours. She carried this incredible balance all night, so much humility onstage while also radiating the kind of confidence that only comes from truly owning a moment. At one point she turned to her husband backstage and told him he needed to be filming, because the standing ovations just kept coming, wave after wave of the crowd rising to its feet for her.
It’s hard to watch a set like that without thinking about everything behind it. Duff hadn’t put out music in around fifteen years before this album, and from what she’s shared, she went into this comeback nervous, unsure whether people would even show up for her after that long away. That uncertainty turned into a mini tour, and the mini tour turned into demand so overwhelming it became the full run she’s on now, one that’s carried her through Red Rocks, Madison Square Garden, and the Kia Forum. Watching her command a crowd like this, she is absolutely crushing it, and it shows. Looking around, it was clear most of us in that crowd grew up right alongside her, though there were younger faces mixed in too, kids whose parents grew up on Hilary Duff and are now passing that love down a generation. It was full circle in the sweetest, most unexpected way.
My only real regret of the night was picking the wrong shoes. My feet ached so badly by the end that it genuinely tugged at my attention when I wanted to be fully present in the moment. Even so, I had the time of my life. I walked out without a voice left to speak with, and it truly was everything dreams are made of.
Photos by Jess Nelson Media // Please note: we were not approved for official photography coverage. These photos were taken from the crowd and on an iPhone.
If any information in this coverage is incorrect or needs to be fixed, please email PCD Editor at jessica@postconcertdepression.com. Thank you!
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