Childish Gambino ends era with nostalgia, anticipation

"This is not a concert. This is church."

Donald Glover — currently, but soon to be formerly, known as Childish Gambino — echoed this phrase throughout his concert at TD Garden on Wednesday night. He led his congregation with fire, triumph and an honest celebration of the rap moniker that led him to this tour.

All good things must come to an end, though. As Glover reiterated to the packed crowd, this will be his final tour under the name Childish Gambino. While the next chapter of his musical career isn't fully fleshed out yet, his "This is America" Tour is surely the proper ending to the journey Glover has made as Gambino.

The set spanned Glover's discography, though it left out his earlier mixtapes and his debut album "Camp" (2011). While those projects certainly can't be ignored when understanding the history of Childish Gambino, Glover has markedly moved past that era musically. Fans of "Because the Internet" (2013) need not worry, however, as Glover gave fans a rush of nostalgia on multiple occassions throughout the evening with tracks from that breakout pop-rap opus.

The show began with something entirely new, however: an officially unreleased and probably unfinished track entitled "Algorythm." The song, while likely not in its final iteration yet started the night off with a compelling beat that had the Garden dancing from the very beginning.

Familiarity struck soon after, though, with "Boogieman," off his most recent album "Awaken, My Love!" (2016), as well as the more recently released "Summertime Magic," the seasonal anthem off of his new EP "Summer Pack" (2018). While both exhibited Glover's sweaty, shirtless yet ultimately majestic stage presence, the crowd needed a song to which it could truly let loose.

Enter "I. The Worst Guys" and "II. Worldstar," two classic bangers from the aforementioned "Because the Internet." With this back-to-back run, TD Garden was on fire and Glover began his sermon in earnest.

The first thing he did was to walk offstage immediately. Two adjacent screens lit up, as Glover's crew filmed him walking backstage and eventually out onto the concourse at the Garden. He picked what turned out to be a very lucky Loge section and entered through the curtain.

With the help of talented keyboardist Lynette Williams, Glover sang a heartfelt bit of "Stand Tall" right in the middle of the crowd. He eventually made his way back to the stage for a spectacular run of "Awaken, My Love!" cuts, including "Have Some Love," "Riot" and "Terrified." With frantic yet composed dancing, loud and funky jams from Glover and a selection of some of the greatest songs in his discography, this run was a definite high point in the show.

Glover's next move was to finish off the "Summer Pack" EP with the other song from the project, "Feels Like Summer" (2018), though it was only a precursor to one of the best moments of the evening.

What followed "Feels Like Summer" was a genuinely exceptional surprise, as he performed another new song he's been working on. While the title is unconfirmed, rumors suggest that it may be called "Spirits." The track, which showcased reflective lyricism, a dreamlike beat and a clear gospel influence, immediately sounded like one of the greatest things Glover has created, even from one listen. An amalgamation of everything the crowd had seen so far during the show, and furthermore everything Glover has progressed to as an artist, "Spirits" truly feels the end of an era — a heartfelt ode to Childish Gambino.

For the final act of Glover's main set, he brought out the single that kicked off his big summer as well as the namesake for the tour — the smash hit "This is America." He ended church with the same energy that he began it with and left the stage to a crowd screaming for more.

After letting his fans scream for a little bit, Glover obliged with four of his biggest hits as Childish Gambino, a celebration of the success and memories he and his fans shared under the name.

The bass drop in "Sober" shook TD Garden to its absolute core. "V. 3005"  sent the masses into a nostalgic frenzy, and "IV. Sweatpants" pushed them into overdrive. The encore was 20 minutes of pure screaming, dancing and happiness within every soul in the building.

And no, Glover didn't forget "Redbone," his best-selling song to date. He capped off the encore and his final show in Boston as Childish Gambino with the groovy yet meme-able track, ending the era with a nod to a masterfully crafted hit.

By the time church was over, he had treated the crowd to a night of thinking, loving and celebration. The "This is America" Tour was the happiest ending to Childish Gambino anyone could have asked for; Glover gave TD Garden a moment to appreciate everything that had led up to this experience, as well as a reason to be extremely optimistic about his future musical projects — under whatever name they may be.