Creed performed at the Schottenstein Center Monday. Credit: Sinéad Brady | Lantern Reporter
Creed’s show at the Schottenstein Center Sunday was a glory lap in celebration of the band’s long-awaited reunion.
After eleven long, Creed-less years, neither the band nor their fans took this night for granted. On a hot and humid evening, fans crowded together to support the Tallahassee legends and their heavy-hitting openers, Mammoth and Daughtry.
Mammoth was composed of an impressive group of musicians and fronted by singer Wolfgang Van Halen, who would have made himself famous on his own with his skilled guitar playing — if his father Eddie hadn’t done it first. If you missed Mammoth with Creed, I recommend catching them at KEMBA Live! on Nov. 20.
Daughtry’s set built on Mammoth’s, transitioning from their heavy alt sound to a more 2000s-style heavy rock, with a red Nord stage pro synthesizer and an intense light show bringing additional elements of drama. Chris Daughtry, the band’s lead singer, expressed a great deal of gratitude for earning their first two No. 1’s on the Billboard Rock charts in 2024 after not charting for 17 years. The fans returned the love twofold.
While the lineup was initially set to include 3 Doors Down, the band pulled out following singer Brad Arnold’s diagnosis with stage four cancer, and Daughtry stepped up as their replacement. Nevertheless, Arnold was very much present at the show as both Creed and Daughtry wished their friend well and played songs in his honor, as fans lit up the arena with the twinkle of 14,000 phone flashlights.
The night at its core was one of gratitude, nostalgia and celebration, with these sentiments hitting their crescendo during Creed’s set. The tour’s name being “Summer of ‘99” recalls the release year of their sophomore album “Human Clay,” which came near the height of the post-grunge genre’s popularity.
However, Creed’s glory days are anything but over, as the band is back and better than ever. Made up of singer Scott Stapp, guitarist Mark Tremonti, drummer Scott Phillips and bassist Brian Marshall, Creed is a group of consummate professionals — and born performers.
Having long-since swapped in their soft grunge velour for more black leather and denim, Creed now resembles a group of creatine-fueled rock stars. This superhero look is fitting — besides being very rock ’n’ roll, Creed is also embracing past lows while striving for growth, serving as role models for fans to do the same.
One could easily miss the wholesome messaging under the intense strobe lights, smoke, pyrotechnics and five-panel CREED-branded jumbotron. But under the leather, chains and muscles, Stapp’s lyrics are emotionally honest and cathartically relatable. Stapp also spoke in a pastoral yet approachable manner between songs, sometimes to provide insight about the songs, but more often to give heartfelt messages of unity and encouragement to the crowd.
Creed has amassed a dedicated group of fans, showing the same amount of enthusiasm for mega-hit songs like “Higher,” “One Last Breath” and Grammy-winning “With Arms Wide Open,” as for every other number on the setlist. Each song brought a different meaning to the families and friend groups in attendance.
It was a night to remember, with many fans ending the night arm-in-arm and grinning cheek-to-cheek as they sang along, note-for-note. The concert served as a reminder to Columbus of how much fun stadium rock can be when legends take the wheel.
This story was updated July 23 at 2:45 p.m. to correct the date for Mammoth’s KEMBA Live! show.
