The journey to The Fillmore to see Michael Marcagi should have been simple. It wasn’t.
It was the evening of March 19th, and I had an hour-long trip on public transit ahead of me into San Francisco. The opener was set to take the stage at 8pm, so my friend (and photographer) Aidan and I decided leaving around 7:15pm would give us time to catch some of the opener and the entirety of Marcagi’s performance. Of course, both of us were running late. I frantically texted him as I hurried to the Bart station: “You have a camera, right?” “Wait no,” he responded.
I panicked.
Aidan had made it to the station by this point, and I stood in the drizzling rain anxiously texting everyone I could think of with a camera. Finally, I received a response: the lead of B-Side’s photography department had a camera at her house on the opposite side of campus. It was almost 8pm at this point, but I was still determined. I hopped on the next 51B bus and made the slow journey to the Clark Kerr area. After picking up the Canon, I grabbed a $50 Lyft (painful), knowing we were barely going to make the show. Once the driver swung through downtown to pick up Aidan, we were finally on our way to SF.
The walk up the steep steps into The Fillmore for the first time made the effort it had taken to get there almost worth it. As we emerged into the central hallway, walls covered with photos from legendary past performers appeared. It felt like walking into a time capsule — like a space only a number of people had the honor of experiencing. I stared stunned at the images, fangirling over members of the Grateful Dead, Santana, Led Zeppelin, Sleater-Kinney, and more.
(Left to right) Kyle Emerson on guitar, Jacob Thomas Junior on drums, Michael Marcagi on vocals and guitar, Ryan Tullock on bass, Dillon Napier on drums.
Like clockwork, the instant I stepped on the dance floor, Michael Marcagi and his band stepped on stage. If you didn’t know Marcagi before the show, you could tell a great deal about him from the way he presents himself: Blundstone boots, light wash jeans (slightly too skinny), a navy faux-jersey tee with a white long sleeve layered beneath, and a thick mustache to top it off. He’s your classic folk/Americana artist — originally from Cincinnati, Ohio, early 30’s, and whose claim to fame was his hit song, “Scared to Start,” which went viral on TikTok in 2024 and marked his entry on the Billboard Hot 100. Essentially, an off-brand Noah Kahan.
Marcagi opened with “Keep Me Honest,” a fan favorite, on the electric guitar. As he got comfortable on stage, I reflected on what it would feel like to be performing at The Fillmore as a relatively small artist. It’s an immense amount of pressure — to play where legends have stood — and is a major moment in any up-and-coming musicians’ career.
“What’s up everybody? I’m so fucking blessed to be here,” Marcagi addressed the crowd. “Let’s have a good night! I love you guys.”
The crowd was a spectacle in itself. I felt like I was back home in Portland, Oregon, surrounded by a sea of unscathed Carhartt pants, flat-brimmed hats, and mustaches: white male manipulator central. At one point, the audience surged with a cheer. Aidan whispered behind me, “They’re begging for more craft beer!” The energy in the room was palpable, but in a curated, performative way that made me wonder if half the people were fans of the music or just dedicated to the aesthetic of being there.
Marcagi’s voice is nothing out of the ordinary, but it is clear and offers a decent range. His songwriting is meaningful and flows well, but it fails to pack a punch. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a fan of folk, but this is kind of what you get with emerging folk artists these days: they lack originality, but sometimes they hit — like a thrifted Patagonia fleece.
Even with some of my favorite songs of the performance, there was usually something left to be said. For example, the lyrics to his new single “Follows you,” written about running away from your problems, hit close to home, but the song itself was unmemorable. I felt like I was begging for more — he’s right on the edge of something, but just not quite there yet.
The second half of the performance offered slightly more variety than the first. Marcagi finally transitioned away from the electric guitar to acoustic, which suits his songwriting significantly better, as I expected. He threw in a few covers, including Harry Styles’ “Falling” and “deja vu,” by Olivia Rodrigo, where his opener Ashley Kutcher hopped in on vocals. There were even a few bangers in the mix, like “In The Light,” prompting some serious foot stomping from the audience.
My favorite song of the night was “Savannah,” a Caamp-esq tune that reminded me of what I love about this genre: simplicity. Folk is a reminder that music doesn’t have to be groundbreaking to be quality, but it does have to be engaging. And while Marcagi certainly has immense potential, he’s still hovering between good and unoriginal.
I appreciated Marcagi’s talent — his voice is strong and his songwriting is impressive — but in a genre overflowing with artists of similar talent, he doesn’t bring anything new to the table. That said, I left The Fillmore feeling like the performance was worth the journey of getting there and I enjoyed stomping my feet in the sea of Carhartts. If indie-folk has taught us anything, it’s that with the right amount of reverb and a good pair of boots, even the familiar can feel meaningful.
Article by Sailor Hill
Photos by Aidan Somaini
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