Drake Bell thrilled Phoenix fans at exclusive downtown listening parties

When Drake Bell completed "Non-Stop Flight," his 2024 album with a vintage air travel theme, he hoped that people would imagine they were on an airplane when they heard it.

"This album was really a concept album where I wanted you to be able to put headphones on and feel like you were in an airplane on this psychedelic musical journey through the skies from beginning to end," he says.

The "Drake & Josh" actor didn't think it could ever happen. And then he found out about Carry On, Phoenix's acclaimed vintage airplane-themed bar.

On Aug. 20, Bell hosted two listening parties at Carry On in downtown Phoenix. Fans paid nearly $300 for a 90-minute experience that included three drinks, four small courses, the opportunity to talk and take photos with Bell and the chance to hear "Non-Stop Flight" exactly as the artist envisioned it.

Allison Ford of Houston came to Phoenix for the early event at 7:30 p.m. (Another go-around of the party was held at 9 p.m.) A high-school teacher, Ford left school for the day and headed straight for the airport to make it in time.

She wasn't a "Drake & Josh" fan during the teen comedy's run on Nickelodeon from 2004 to 2007, but discovered Bell when he performed as the Ice King on "The Masked Singer" in 2024.

Since then, she's seen Bell perform in Houston, Orlando, Nashville, Las Vegas and New York, and knew she had to be in Phoenix for the listening party.

"I thought, I’m going to regret it if I don’t go to this show," she said. "What an experience. I’m super-stoked to be here."

After some brief remarks and a welcome drink, Bell performed "I Kind of Relate" off "Non-Stop Flight," accompanying himself on the keyboard.

"My big dream was to do something like this, and I didn’t know something like this existed. Then I found Carry On, and I was like, 'Oh my gosh, I can make something like this come to life,'" Bell told the attendees. "So thank you so much, and this is exactly how I wanted this album to be heard and listened to and experienced, so I’m very excited to experience this and enjoy it with you guys."

At the end of the 7:30 p.m. event, perhaps no one had higher praise for Carry On than Bell himself.

"It was incredible," he said. "My mind is blown. To be sitting here, listening to my album on the airplane, with the visuals outside and feeling the airplane under the seat, it’s a really, really surreal experience.

"It’s just perfect, all the aesthetics and everything, so it’s a dream come true."

Scroll down to see photos from the Drake Bell "Non-Stop Flight" listening party.