Yola Blesses the Mother Church

Saying that you’ve “been taken to church” has been used so often to describe a memorable show at the Ryman, aka the Mother Church of Country Music, that the true meaning of the phrase seems to have almost been erased. On Thursday evening, the first of two Nashville dates on Yola's Stand 4 Myself Tour, the joyful, soul-stirring gathering was not only worthy of the old chestnut but also could easily be its new definition.

The night kicked off with a performance from Allison Russell, whose critically acclaimed debut solo record Outside Child is up for three Grammys. The intensely personal project served as a vessel of healing and reclamation of power for Russell, who endured immense trauma during her childhood in Montreal that partly informs the album. She went on to find a warm, welcoming community of like-minded creative folks in Nashville. It's only fitting that Russell would bring part of that community with her to soak in the delight of her Ryman show.

The group, which she named “The Rainbow Coalition of the Loving,” was composed of cellist Larissa Maestro, guitarists Mandy Fer and Joy Clark, bassist Ryan Madora, cellist Monique Ross and violinist Chauntee Ross. The sibling duo performs as SistaStrings and recently made a move to Nashville. Before rolling into her song “4th Day Prayer,” Russell shared a kind of benediction that resonated throughout the evening. “We are not what we've lost,” she declared. “We are not alone. We are more than the sum of our scars.”

That sense of community was the thread woven through every second of Russell's set. Fellow Nashville talent Daisha McBride made a surprise appearance during “All of the Women,” adding powerful rap verses that reinforce the song's plea for protection and recognition for those whose suffering gets a blind eye turned toward it.

Russell's husband and Birds of Chicago bandmate JT Nero joined her onstage for the album-closing “Joyful Motherfuckers”; the couple’s young daughter Ida then made her own surprise appearance. SistaStrings, along with Chauntee Ross' daughter Braelyn, gave the perfect end to the set by filling out the texture of “Nightflyer” with sweet harmonies, encouraging the crowd to join in. The coalition gathered one last time for a bow as the crowd rewarded them with a lengthy and much-deserved standing ovation.

The past three years have been a whirlwind for U.K.-born singer-songwriter Yola. She recorded her 2019 album Walk Through Fire here in Nashville with The Black Keys' Dan Auerbach at his Easy Eye Sound Studio. That record wasn’t her first-ever release, but along with her collaborations with country supergroup The Highwomen, it firmly positioned her as one of the best new voices within the big tent of Americana. Yola’s 2021 album Stand for Myself proved to any doubters that her talent stretches beyond any barriers or expectations that come with genre labels.

On Thursday, Yola made it clear that the time she spent off the road in Music City as the pandemic raged didn't dampen her natural charismatic stage presence. Her consistently jaw-dropping vocal range and control hit what felt like an almost unbelievable new level of intensity, as well.

Her set featured a mixture of tunes from both albums. Stand for Myself songs like “Be My Friend,” “Break the Bough,” “Great Divide” and the superlative “Stand for Myself” fit in nicely alongside a stripped-down take on the Walk Through Fire song “It Ain't Easy.” A cover of Elton John's “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road,” which she recorded for the deluxe edition of Walk Through Fire, is something of a staple in her live set, and for good reason — she gracefully conveys the grandeur of John’s statement about profound loneliness.

Even the more subdued songs of the night reverberated with a powerful energy. SistaStrings and Russell came out to join Yola, who called Russell a “sister in spirit,” for a stunning rendition of Aretha Franklin's “Daydreaming.” She also paused to acknowledge the second anniversary of the tornado outbreak that killed roughly two dozen people throughout Middle Tennessee and injured or displaced many more. Both Yola and Russell, who were living together at the time, huddled for safety in their Nashville-area basement as the storm passed.

With an already impressive stream of crowd-pleasing songs behind her, Yola offered an energetic encore that included a medley of throwback covers that inspired dancing in the pews — a feat rarely achieved by even the most seasoned of Ryman headliners. She brought two R&B hits from the ’80s to an eager new audience, including her take on Anita Baker's “Sweet Love” and Yarbrough & Peoples’ funky stomper “Don't Stop the Music.” If you didn't know those songs before walking into the Ryman, Yola's jubilant interpretations made them unforgettable.

When Yola and her bandmates made their way backstage and the lights finally came up, an electric feeling lingered in the air. The evening was a well-deserved celebration of two immense talents who are giving back to Nashville as much as they get from it (and perhaps even more). But it also represented a collective moment of hope, healing and catharsis at a time when it’s sorely needed.