It’s rare to find an artist who can render the entire crowd speechless with just one note, but Chappell Roan is no ordinary pop star.
Her meteoric rise has clashed with controversial tour cancellations and disgruntled (and demanding) fans as the Naked in Manhattan singer navigates her newfound fame.
All this hype – which came with an absolutely mad dash for fans trying to secure the not-many tickets available, with some going on resale for a whopping £1,000 – has put her three-night stint at the reopened O2 Academy Brixton under a microscope as fans wonder if she can possibly be worth all of this drama.
And, ultimately, that is a yes. She is worth every second.
And it’s easy to see why so many people are desperate to see this superstar in the making before she’s filling arenas, which won’t be long at all.
This was not a gimmick-filled performance that relied on huge production value, even by Chappell’s drag standards her look was incredibly understated.
London’s second night was about one thing only; the incredible vocal talent that is Chappell Roan.
The 26-year-old singer is such a captivating performer that fans didn’t even mind that she arrived on stage about 10 minutes late.
Her loaded concert was packed with tune after tune, getting fans instantly up and dancing as she whizzed through favourites like Super Graphic Ultra Modern Girl and Femininomenon.
Arms were up in the air constantly and the venue was heaving, with the energy more akin to Avril Lavigne’s famed 70k gig at Glastonbury 2024 than Brixton’s small Academy.
Shockingly, fan favourite Hot To Go — complete with YMCA-style moves — arrived fairly early on, effortlessly bringing the mood back up after slower track Picture You.
This ebb and flow of party pleasers mixed with more intimate songs worked perfectly for the hour-and-a-half set to keep the pace going, with not even a whisper of a lull.
However, it’s this sprinting through the album that made me feel Chappell – who recently stunned the world with her MTV VMA debut performance of her hit Good Luck, Babe! – may have missed a trick to really elevate her show.
For a next-level performance, she could have experimented with a sprinkling of her older music.
For those unaware, Chappell released an EP in 2017 which has been all but left in the dust as the behemoth that is The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess dominates.
With so many great tracks to choose from it’s no surprise her previous songs didn’t make the cut but testing audiences with Meantime or Die Young (both sonically different from her album) could have added some dimension to her gig.
This meant the setlist felt incredibly safe, these are after all her biggest songs (no really, she performed every song except Guilty Pleasure which is the least streamed on Spotify).
That being said, you could be forgiven for thinking this was in fact a greatest hits tour given the sheer amount of absolute bangers she has to her name.
Her live show really highlighted how monumental this debut album feels; it’s not just one of the greatest pop albums of the past year but it could go down as something much bigger in music history.
Only a few months after bursting from obscurity, Chappell was singing with a 5,000-strong crowd who seemed to know every word to every single song.
Even later in the set when she rolled out an as-yet unreleased track called The Subway, fans were instantly singing along like it had been out for years.
Don’t believe us? Ask actor Andrew Scott who also appeared to be belting out ‘she’s got a way/ she got away’ from the balcony seats.
We’re not sure there’s higher praise than that.
Chappell, who has been really open about her struggles with fame and her mental health, is an undeniable talent but only time will tell if she can turn that into the success she deserves.
There’s potential here, as a performer she’s incredible but to break out of the overcrowded female pop soloist sphere and become something more, she needs to take a few more risks.
So, good luck, babe.
Got a story?
If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.
MORE : The huge Pink Floyd hit song David Gilmour ‘won’t perform’ anymore
MORE : Rock star who is favourite to support Oasis has 3-word response to rumours
MORE : Legendary 70s UK rock band announces their farewell tour
