Musicians singing on couches have become pop’s comfiest stage trend
Rolling Stone tracks how Lily Allen, Lucy Dacus, Hilary Duff and Charli XCX turned couches into the latest concert prop.
By Georgia Hale · Staff Writer
3 min read
Musicians singing on couches have become a visible concert trend, with Rolling Stone pointing to recent sets by Lily Allen, Charli XCX, Hilary Duff, Lucy Dacus and others as proof that the living-room staple has moved under the stage lights.
The couch has long had a place in lyrics, Rolling Stone noted, citing songs by Jeff Buckley, Paramore, Arctic Monkeys and Snail Mail. Its newer role is more physical: a prop artists can sit, sprawl or perch on while shifting the mood of a show.
Why are musicians singing on couches?
Rolling Stone’s read is that couches give artists an easy way to make an arena or theater feel smaller, warmer and more conversational. They also let a performer slow down a set, rest for a moment and frame a personal song like a confession rather than a spectacle.
Beds had their recent run, too. Rolling Stone cited Sabrina Carpenter singing “Bed Chem” from a canopy bed on her Short n’ Sweet Tour, Taylor Swift using a large white metal bed for “Fortnight” during the Eras run, and Usher bringing a mattress into his current tour for “Seduction.”
Lucy Dacus may have the strongest claim as an early adopter in this wave. Rolling Stone reported that Dacus has used couches throughout her Forever Is a Feeling Tour, including during “Bullseye,” where guests have included Ani DiFranco and Sleater-Kinney’s Corin Tucker.
At All Things Go in New York last year, Rolling Stone reported, Dacus also brought out mayor-to-be Zohran Mamdani for a chat. Her couch history goes back further: in 2022, Dacus performed while lying down after dealing with two herniated discs in her back, according to Rolling Stone.
For Hilary Duff, the furniture ties straight into the song. Rolling Stone noted that Duff uses a couch for “We Don’t Talk,” from her album Luck …or Something, a track rumored to be about her estranged sister, Haylie.
The couch shows up in the lyric “On the couch,” and some fans read meaning into the couch’s color. Duff rejected that theory in an interview with Rolling Stone, saying the idea was “absolute bullshit” and “totally not true,” adding that the song was about her truth rather than a trail of clues for fans to decode.
Lily Allen’s couch carries a more specific backstory. Architectural Digest reported that Allen’s West End Girl tour uses actual furniture from the Brooklyn townhouse she once shared with actor David Harbour, while Rolling Stone noted the album is widely perceived to be about their divorce.
Allen has changed the couch style across performances, according to Rolling Stone, including a red velvet tufted sofa at Radio City in New York. The publication reported that she sits on a couch for “Sleepwalking,” a song that includes the line, “Who said romance isn’t dead?/Been no romance since we wed.”
The list keeps growing. Rolling Stone also cited Reneé Rapp’s short Brooklyn set celebrating Bite Me, Mitski’s performance of “Circle” in support of Nothing’s About to Happen to Me, several songs on Phoebe Bridgers’ phoneless tour, including Madison Square Garden, and Charli XCX’s intimate Brooklyn gig earlier this month.
Rolling Stone suggested vintage TV sets could be another prop to watch, noting Waxahatchee and MJ Lenderman used them on a recent joint tour. For now, the couch is the seat everyone in pop seems happy to take.
This story draws on original reporting from Rolling Stone.