The Gold Dust Woman Still Glitters: Stevie Nicks Closes Tour with Magic at Hard Rock Live In Hollywood, Florida

By Joanie Cox Henry

Photo By Chris Allmeid

There's something magical about watching Stevie Nicks command a stage in 2025. On Dec. 10, 2025, the goddess of rock closed out her North American tour (and honored a rescheduled date that fans had been holding their breath for) with the kind of performance that reminded everyone why she's not just a legend, but a living, breathing force of nature.

From the moment she swept onstage for the opening notes of "Not Fade Away"—Buddy Holly's eternal anthem filtered through Nicks' mystical lens—it was clear this show was going to be a meaningful one.

The setlist was one made of "Dreams," literally. "Outside the Rain" sat comfortably alongside immortal anthems, each song a different colored ribbon in the same supernatural tapestry. When "Dreams" unfurled its hypnotic groove, the crowd didn't just sing along—they seemed to levitate. Nicks' voice floating through the air with the that familiar power and grace that's become its own instrument, turning Fleetwood Mac's 1977 meditation on heartbreak into something that felt both nostalgic and urgently present.

But it was the tributes that transformed the evening from concert to catharsis. Nicks has never been one to shy from honoring her friends, and on this night, she wore her heart on her flowing sleeve. "Free Fallin'" became a tender memorial to Tom Petty, her voice beaming with genuine emotion as she spoke about their friendship—that rare, precious connection between two artists who understood each other's magic. She didn't just perform the song; she channeled it, making Petty's presence felt in every note. She paid additonal homage to Petty with a rousing rendition of their iconic duet, "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around."

Christine McVie's absence hung like bittersweet smoke through the Fleetwood Mac catalog, and when Nicks dedicated "Landslide" in the encore to her bandmate and sister-in-song, grown adults wept openly. She also paid tribute to Prince, that purple-hued genius whose spirit seemed to dance through "Stand Back," the song he helped birth in those fevered early-80s sessions.

"The Lighthouse"—Nicks' recent rallying cry—shone with particular briliance, its themes of guidance and resilience taking on new weight as she stood before several thousand souls all searching for their own way home. And when "Edge of Seventeen" exploded into being, that irresistible opening riff cutting through the air like a white-winged dove, the room didn't just erupt—it detonated.

The encore was gorgeous and I was greedy for the verse. "Rhiannon" saw Nicks spinning, twirling, becoming that mythical goddess she's embodied for nearly five decades, her shawls creating their own weather system.

But perhaps the most electrifying moment came at the very end, when Nicks—this 77-year-old sorceress in platform boots—grinned like a kid and delivered news that sent the crowd into raptures: she's coming back in 2026. She has no plans to stop. Why would she? She's still having too much fun.

"Keep dancing!" she called out to her flock, and it wasn't just advice. It was a command that frankly I cannot resist obeying!

As the lights went down on the final night of the tour, one truth became a crystal vision. The Gold Dust Woman is still scattering her magic, still weaving her stories with wisdom, tenacity and truth, and still believing in the power of a good twirl and a great song to save the world. "Don't Stop" believing in Stevie!