A Duel of Nostalgia: Emo Nite Brings We The Kings and Plain White T’s to San Antonio
"isn’t structured as a nostalgia showcase so much as a cultural faceoff"
For a certain corner of the 2000s, heartbreak was compressed into two names: Delilah and Juliet. One belonged to the Plain White T’s acoustic ballad that won radio dominance in 2007. The other was pulled from We The Kings’ pop-punk sprint, a love letter wrapped in three chords and speed. Together, they formed an odd but fitting pair—songs that teenagers scribbled into yearbooks, uploaded to MySpace, and shouted at basement parties.
Nearly twenty years later, those two tracks are the backbone of an event arriving at Vibes Event Center on Saturday, October 25, 2025. Emo Nite Presents: Delilah vs. Juliet isn’t structured as a nostalgia showcase so much as a cultural faceoff, with We The Kings and Plain White T’s standing as co-headliners. The framing is tongue-in-cheek—no winner will be crowned—but the billing leans into the shorthand those songs have become.
The Plain White T’s, still tethered to the legacy of “Hey There Delilah,” have used it as both a calling card and a challenge, working to keep their catalog from being overshadowed by one defining hit as noted in Elon’s recent coverage. We The Kings, meanwhile, have kept “Check Yes Juliet” in rotation as a reminder of when their leap from hometown gigs to festival stages first clicked, a point Travis Clark recently reflected on in a Q&A with The Maneater.
Born in Los Angeles as a small club night, Emo Nite has grown into a national circuit where setlists mix DJ spins, surprise guests, and full-band performances. Its San Antonio stop doubles down on live nostalgia while leaving the opener marked TBA, a move consistent with the brand’s history of slotting in rising acts or unexpected cameos.
We’re betting that two names etched into our playlists nearly two decades ago still have the power to pack a hall. For many, it won’t be about picking sides—it’ll be about remembering who they were when those names first meant something.
VENUE
Vibes Event Center
LINEUP
We The Kings
Plain White T’s