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Former Disney actor's The Driver Era dazzles Pittsburgh during opening night of tour | TribLIVE.com
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Former Disney actor's The Driver Era dazzles Pittsburgh during opening night of tour

Megan Swift
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Megan Swift | TribLive
The Driver Era — featuring brothers Ross and Rocky Lynch — brought the house down Tuesday at the Roxian Theatre in McKees Rock.
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Megan Swift | TribLive
The Driver Era — featuring brothers Ross and Rocky Lynch — brought the house down Tuesday at the Roxian Theatre in McKees Rock.
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Megan Swift | TribLive
The Driver Era — featuring brothers Ross and Rocky Lynch — brought the house down Tuesday at the Roxian Theatre in McKees Rock.
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Megan Swift | TribLive
Fan wait to get into the The Driver Era concert on Tuesday at the Roxian Theatre in McKees Rock.
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Megan Swift | TribLive
Fan wait for The Driver Era concert to begin at the Roxian Theatre in McKees Rock.
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Megan Swift | TribLive
Vale opened for The Driver Era on Tuesday at the Roxian Theatre in McKees Rock.
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Megan Swift | TribLive
Vale opened for The Driver Era on Tuesday at the Roxian Theatre in McKees Rock.

The Driver Era — featuring brothers Ross and Rocky Lynch — brought the house down Tuesday night in the Roxian Theatre during its first North American tour stop.

The McKees Rocks venue was sold out, and despite the miserable weather, fans showed up in droves to watch the band.

Western Pennsylvania saw flash flood warnings on Tuesday, followed by a tornado watch issued by the National Weather Service that spanned the duration of the concert.

The line to get inside the Roxian wrapped around the block.

The alternative rock duo consists of two of the Lynch brothers who were former members of their now-defunct family band, R5.

Opening with “Back To You” from their album titled “Summer Mixtape,” Ross walked onstage wearing a blazer and jeans, and Rocky sported an all-black ensemble.

The Driver Era played its latest single, “Get Off My Phone,” next. Ross joked that the crowd might not know the lyrics to that selection, as it was just released in February. The audience proved him wrong — shouting along to the whole tune.

After “Feel You Now” from their debut album “X,” which was released in 2019, and “Take Me Away” from their 2021 album “Girlfriend,” the brothers played a series of crowd-pleasers.

Ross’ blazer didn’t last very long. It was discarded during “Need A Man” in lieu of his baseball-style short-sleeved The Driver Era T-shirt, which was also available for purchase at the merch stand.

“Rumors” and “Afterglow” were also tunes most of the crowd knew the words to. The band also played “Natural,” “Places” and “Heaven Angel.”

Arguably one of the most showstopping tunes was “Malibu.” What is usually an upbeat, chill summer anthem was turned into a groovy number — even featuring some salsa dancing by the bandmates.

Chants of “Take it off!” resounded throughout the Roxian, referencing Ross’ shirt. He egged on the crowd, promising something even better.

“Have you seen ‘Teen Beach Movie’?” Ross asked.

His question was met with excited screams.

Ross starred in the Disney film in 2013, and the hits from the soundtrack are still widely appreciated over a decade later.

He performed the ballad “On My Own” from the movie next, followed by “Forever Always” and “San Francisco.”

The Driver Era also played an enthusiastic rendition of “Nobody Knows,” which included a well-executed knee spin dance move and some break dancing.

Ross snagged a fan’s red cowboy hat from the front row for the dance break with hat choreography before singing “Low.”

The band then played an oldie from the brothers’ R5 days, “All Night,” which Ross dedicated to a fan from Spain he pointed at in the front row.

Strobe lights and water effects introduced the second-to-last song of the main set, “Fantasy,” offering a slow groovy sound to the audience.

Ross then finally took off his shirt, much to the anticipation of the crowd. The action received loud cheers.

“Preacher Man” closed out the main set, featuring a drum solo. Ross sported sunglasses as he jumped around the stage for the energetic number.

The Driver Era’s encore included “Heart of Mine” and the band’s most famous tune, “A Kiss.”

VALÉ opened for The Driver Era, bringing pizazz and Colombian flair to the stage.

Megan Swift is a TribLive reporter covering trending news in Western Pennsylvania. A Murrysville native, she joined the Trib full time in 2023 after serving as editor-in-chief of The Daily Collegian at Penn State. She previously worked as a Jim Borden Scholarship intern at the Trib for three summers. She can be reached at mswift@triblive.com.

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