The Driver Era, the musical duo made up of brothers Rocky and Ross Lynch, is making a stop at the Andrew J Brady Music Center on their “Obsession Tour” this month, bringing their groovy sound and thrilling performance style along for the ride.
The two are no strangers to the music industry, as they started out in R5, a pop-rock band that consisted of two additional members of the Lynch family, Riker and Rydel, and their family friend, Ellington Ratliff. Formed in 2009, R5 released the albums Louder and Sometime Last Night, which featured some of the band’s most popular releases, including “(I Can’t) Forget About You” and “All Night.” In 2018, Rocky and Ross decided to form The Driver Era, as the rest of the band went on to pursue careers outside of the music industry.
With the transition from R5 to The Driver Era came more of an alternative and electronic sound, which clearly resonated with fans of the duo. Their debut album, X, featured their first hit single, “Preacher Man,” which became a fan favorite and debuted at no. 15 on Billboard’s Alternative Digital Song Sales chart in 2019.
Their next two albums, Girlfriend and Summer Mixtape, were released in 2021 and 2022 and showcased the many different influences that the duo has drawn their sound and style from, ranging from Calvin Harris to Pharrell Williams to Prince. The duo also released Live at the Greek in December 2023, a collection of recorded live performances from their sold-out show at the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles in June 2023.
Fast forward to 2025 and The Driver Era’s upcoming album, Obsession, is set to be released on April 11. Four singles have been released from the album, including the punchy-yet-sensual “Touch” and the funk-filled track “Don’t Walk Away,” providing some insight into the tone of the album. A captivating and genre-bending project, the album touches on topics like love and longing while being backed by moody synths and dance-inducing melodies that lay the foundation for The Driver Era’s high-energy and infectious live performances.
The Driver Era plays the Andrew J Brady Music Center at 8 p.m. on March 16. More info: bradymusiccenter.com.
This story is featured in CityBeat’s March 5 print edition.
This article appears in Mar 5-18, 2025.
