Music lovers want to come over to bergenPAC in Englewood, NJ this Saturday, April 10, 2026 evening for a concert by singer/songwriter Melissa Etheridge.
Born in Leavenworth, Kansas in 1961, Melissa Etheridge began playing guitar at the age of eight and performed in a variety of country music groups throughout her teenage years.
While attending Boston’s Berklee College of Music, Melissa played the local club circuit before heading out to Los Angeles to pursue a career in music. After her first album was dismissed by her record company as being too polished, she completed a stripped-down replacement album, Melissa Etheridge, in just four days. Released in 1988, the recording went on to become an underground hit and the album’s single, “Bring Me Some Water,” was nominated for a Grammy.
After contributing background vocals to Don Henley’s album, The End of the Innocence, Etheridge released her second recording in 1989, Brave and Crazy, which garnered her a second Grammy nomination. Her third album, Never Enough, helped to deliver Etheridge her first Grammy win for Best Rock Vocal Performance.
In 1993, Etheridge achieved mainstream success with the release of Yes I Am, a recording which spent over two and a half years on the Billboard charts and was certified Platinum six times. In 1994, she won a second Grammy for Best Rock Vocal Performance. Her latest recording is Rise, which was released in March of 2026.
Inside the bergenPAC auditorium, the lights dim and drummer Eric Gardner, bassist Derek Frank, and multi-instrumentalist Max Hart take the stage. Fans stand and cheer as Melissa Etheridge makes her entrance, singing a cappella in her strong husky voice, “Don’t you want a woman who can rock your soul?” Joining in on “Don’t You Want a Woman” the band renders a soulful arrangement of this rockabilly tune which features a pedal steel guitar solo by Max Hart.
Etheridge welcomes the crowd exclaiming, “Hello, New Jersey!” and declaring, “I’m going to have a very good time tonight and you’re welcome to join me!” before telling concertgoers how excited she is to be performing songs tonight from her new album, Rise.
Music lovers cheer when the band plays the syncopated intro to Etheridge’s 1988 blues-rock single, “Bring Me Some Water.” Audience members enthusiastically sing along with Melissa on the song’s “Somebody bring me some water/Can’t you see I’m burning alive” chorus. Hands clap overhead as Etheridge rhythmically strums her guitar before segueing into “No Souvenirs” where she sings, “Hello, hello, this is Romeo/Calling from a jackpot telephone,” prior to segueing back into “Bring Me Some Water” to animated cheers and applause.
Etheridge talks about growing up in Leavenworth, KS where Johnny Cash came to town and performed at the local prison, making a career in music “seem possible” to her. Here, she cries, “I was only eight years old/When he rode into town/Riding on a black horse six-string/With the sun going down,” on “Matches,” a rhythmic Springsteen-like rock story song from Rise.
Fans cheer and Etheridge shifts into her 1988 composition, “Chrome Plated Heart.” With its irresistible funky bass and guitar part, Etheridge sings, “I got a chrome-plated heart/I got wings on these fingers trying to tear it apart.” Then, bass and guitar pick out a funky groove on “Ruins” with Etheridge’s soulful vocal adding to the intensity of the performance as she wails, “I will crawl through my past/Over stones blood and glass/In the ruins,” before rendering a lyrical electric guitar solo which inspires hoots and hollers from the crowd.
“Thank you so much!” exclaims Etheridge, explaining, “I wrote this song because, when I was a child, sometimes they would call me this name — and I’m gonna make it a good thing now.” On “Tomboy” she sings a cappella, “I am a woman of power, desire, and of joy/And when I was a young girl, they called that a tomboy,” before the band kicks in and Melissa accompanies herself on acoustic guitar as she performs this appealing country-rock tune from Rise.
Etheridge follows up with her driving 1993 rocker, “All American Girl,” where the crowd happily joins her in singing the song’s “She’s an all American girl/An all American girl” chorus.
Segueing into “Ain’t it Heavy,” Etheridge sings with power and style as fans dance at their seats before exploding into cheers and applause.
“I love you, New Jersey!” declares Etheridge, “You love your rock and roll and weren’t ever afraid of a woman singing it!” Here, she launches into Rise’s “To Be A Woman,” a slow story song where her low alto voice cries out with emotion on this waltz-like Americana tune before she bends strings, making her guitar sing with a thoughtful solo.
“I thought you might want to hear another guitar song,” announces Etheridge, as she steps into a cover version of Albert King’s “Born Under a Bad Sign,” a bluesy number which has her strutting across the stage while delivering a screaming guitar solo.
Fans cheer and Etheridge explains, “This is the title track to the new album,” before noting, “You gotta write songs that you’ll want to sing forever and ever, and this is one of them.” On “Rise,” Etheridge strums her guitar as she sings, “You’re gonna fall to the earth sometimes/You’re gonna taste the dirt sometimes/Then you’re gonna rise,” on this roots-rocker. As the music builds to a crescendo, she sings, “Rise up!” and fans raise their hands and sway back and forth to the music with her.
Etheridge announces, “Let’s go back to the ‘90s!” as she steps into her much-loved 1996 composition, “I Want to Come Over.” The audience happily joins in on the song’s dynamic “I want to come over/To hell with the consequence/You told me you loved me/That’s all I believe” refrain. Concertgoers cheer at the conclusion when the music abruptly stops and white light bathes Etheridge while she strikes a pose with her arms outspread and her techs outfit her with a different guitar.
Opening with a bluesy guitar intro, Etheridge launches into her 1993 Top 10 single, “I’m the Only One,” where the crowd passionately sings along on the anguished love song’s famous “But I’m the only one/Who’ll walk across the fire for you” lyric. Music lovers move to the song’s infectious 12/8 meter as Etheridge rocks out on guitar, plays harmonica, and concludes the song to outrageous applause.
Etheridge reveals, “Here’s the opening track to the new album,” before exclaiming, “God, I love being alive!” Driving drums propel Rise’s “Bein’ Alive” where she sings, “What a sacred ride/God, I love being alive” on this breathless rocker.
As soon as music lovers hear the strumming acoustic guitar intro to Etheridge’s 1993 Top 40 hit, “Come to My Window,” they rise to their feet. After Melissa announces, “New Jersey, sing it with me!” the crowd joyfully sings along with her on the song’s well-known “Come to my window/Crawl inside, wait by the light of the moon” refrain.
Strumming guitar also opens Etheridge’s funky rocker, “Like the Way I Do,” where Etheridge dances as she sings before putting down her instrument and strolling to the back of the stage to play a drum duet with Eric Gardner. After Melissa gives away her drum sticks to members of the audience, she picks up her guitar and sings, “Nobody loves you, New Jersey, like the way I do. ” Lights stream on concertgoers as they echo sing “Oh-oh” with Melissa before cheering at the conclusion and Etheridge responds, “Thank you so much, New Jersey. We have one more song for you.”
Here, Etheridge comes down into the audience where she says, “This is the last song on the new album, and it’s something I wish for all of us.” On her tender Rise ballad, “More Love,” Etheridge teaches audience members the song’s “More love, more light/More love for you” chorus and they sing it with her as she conducts them before she concludes her show stating, “Speak true. Spread the peace,” to avid cheers and applause.
As concertgoers make their way out of the auditorium, several share their thoughts on tonight’s performance by Melissa Etheridge. Exclaims Winifred from Westbury, NY, “Melissa was wonderful tonight! This was my first time seeing her and she blew me away. Her musicianship was absolutely incredible — it’s amazing how well she sings and plays guitar — and her new album is absolutely terrific.” Tony from Westbury, NY, agrees, adding, “She was tremendous! I hadn’t seen her in many years, but she’s still got it; she’s unbelievable.”
Erin from Rutherford remarks, “I really loved tonight’s show! I came for the old music but loved all her new songs, as well. Melissa still sounds the same as she did in the ’90s and her band was great, too. This was my first time seeing her live and she exceeded my expectations.” Frank from Rutherford agrees, acknowledging, “I haven’t listened to Melissa’s music in a while and I’d forgotten a lot of her songs. She put on a great show this evening — there was so much good energy in the house!”
Cherise from Bergenfield insists, “I loved Melissa Etheridge tonight! My friends and I started coming to see her when we were in our twenties. It’s been a while, but we all got together again tonight, and it feels like we’ve come full circle — Melissa made me feel like I’m 20 again.” Lori from Bergenfield declares, “Melissa was absolutely fabulous tonight — she brought me back to the ‘90s! She sounded amazing — she’s still rockin’ it like it’s nobody’s business!” Lastly, Cheryl from Bergenfield reveals, “Let me say that I was a little apprehensive about coming tonight, but Melissa rocked the sh*t out of it! I was dancing, singing, and having a great time. I was stunned, shocked, amazed, and awed. She was phenomenal!”
For more information on Melissa Etheridge, please go to melissaetheridge.com. To learn more about upcoming events at bergenPAC — including Audra McDonald on May 3, The Sergio Mendes band on June 14, and Buddy Guy on August 4 — please click on bergenpac.org.
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