Rina Sawayama has had her sights set on being the newest queen of pop for a long time now, and with her latest, and arguably greatest tour yet, she might have finally taken her rightful place on the throne. The Japanese-British singer/songwriter has been on a warpath with her musical talents over the last years following a string of successful releases and attracting a truly devoted fanbase at the same time. The talented artist doesn’t just conform to normal pop standards however, the musician also branches out into electropop, rock and several other genres in both her singles and studio albums. Rina Sawayama released her debut studio album ‘Sawayama’ in 2020 which received widespread critical acclaim and it wasn’t long before the star followed up this incredible piece of work with her second studio album ‘Hold the girls’ which released last month and has already been turning the heads of many critics. Ahead of the album’s release Rina announced her biggest Uk and Ireland tour to date and we were lucky enough to catch the star as she took over the Manchester Academy for a special sold-out show. Rina Sawayama was the recipient of the NME award for the best live act this year and early spoilers for this review, she more than deserved that award! Support for the night came from the brilliant Tom Ramussen and Joesef. Joesef returns to Manchester next year for his own headline show at the Manchester Academy 2 in March.
Rina Sawayma took to the stage in incredible fashion, first donning a cowboy themed outfit and was accompanied by her band mates and two talented backup dancers that were also on top form throughout the night. Rina got the night underway with “Minor Feelings” as the crowd proceeded to go into a frenzy. The superstar managed to turn the 2,600-capacity venue into what felt like a packed-out stadium show. With stunning widespread production across the board, phenomenal choreography and several outfit changes across the acts of the show, it was just incredible to be a part of and you just felt like you were witnessing something special. It was the real definition of the birth of a star. Alongside Rina Sawayama’s incredible performance, there needs to be praise for the incredible production that was on show, the lighting, visuals and sound production were all top notch and you can tell Rina and her team love nothing more than performing to sold-out crowds across the globe. Rina took those in attendance on a musical journey through her discography, celebrating all the different eras of her career and musical stylings alike. It was such a variation of music in one night and yet it all combined together to create the ultimate showcase of what this bright star has to offer. Rina Sawayama would go on to play several fan favourites throughout the night like, “comme des garcons”, “XS” and her collaboration track with Charli XCX, “Beg for you” before ending with a special encore of “This Hell”. Every single person in the sold-out academy venue knew they had witnessed something special and you need to see Rina Sawayama live in the flesh when you next get the chance.
RINA SAWAYAMA
JOESEF
Photos + Review by Lewis Roberts | Exclusively for Music, Why Not!