KWN – Jazz Cafe | 9/10 | Watch here
“It is one of those moments where we will look back and start to realise it was the start of a really long and bright future ahead”
KWN’s intimate London shows were highly reviewed across the board. Autotune wasn’t a problem and a band was not needed for her headline show after a huge breakout year. Selling out quickly, with tickets becoming borderline impossible to acquire on the resale market, only the day 1 fans were in attendance, creating everything you want to feel in this intimate setting.
J Hus – Royal Albert Hall | 7/10 | Watch here
“J Hus sounded great. With a full orchestra and The Compozers to support him so from a live music aspect, it sounded amazing”
Performing at the Royal Albert Hall for a £34 ticket, J Hus catered to our ears and pockets this year for his ‘Big Conspiracy’ show. Supported by his DJ’s Ayo Matthews and Jae5, the crowd were well warmed up for this performance. Support from an Orchestra and The Compozers somewhat made up for the poor timing of J Hus, coming to the stage at 10pm, 30 minutes after schedule, to then disappear for another 15 minutes for an outfit change like Newham’s very own Beyonce.
During this interval, The Compozers played hits which were expected to be played by J Hus, despite it being an album run-through for ‘Big Conspiracy’. It felt somewhat like a disservice to skip some of the ‘Common Sense’ bangers, especially after not performing for a long stretch.
If the logistics were handled better, J Hus would have an all timer of a show on his hands, yet he still delivered a high quality performance the fans deserved.
M HUNCHO – Eventim Apollo | 7.5/10 | Watch here
“We got to see more of his personality. Between songs, he was cracking jokes with us and asking about the Arsenal score”
M Huncho somewhat opened up more for this show, making the 8000 capacity West London venue feel intimate. Passing the torch to a line of upcoming artists to take the stage, FinesseKid, Figs0, Kilo Jugg and Anjeli, he gave the new faces of UK rap and wave a chance to shine. On top of this, he welcomed the first live debut of ‘Park Chinois’ with Headie One and K Trap after their cancelled tour, welcoming them by saying “You’ll know who is by his head shape”.
Accompanied by a Live Band and his DJ Quincy, he reminded us that a live band really does elevate a concert experience and more UK artists should take note and follow suit.
JayO – Islington Assembly | 7.5/10 | Watch here
“He did a really good job of taking advantage of the fact the audience wanted to sing back to him”
Crowd control was key at JayO’s Islington Assembly headline show. Warmed up by his DJ, DJ Bonds, the tone was set for JayO’s on-stage arrival at 21:35. Despite being a little late, with a 40 minute total showtime, he managed to make up for it with quality. Like the majority of the high scorers on this list, he was accompanied by a live band. Combining that with his easy to follow, catchy sound, he had the crowd in the palm of hand, turning the concert into an enjoyable singalong. A 40 minute show only being one EP into his career is commendable, alongside the growth in stage presence in comparison to him opening for Rema in 2023. With the only downside being the timing, the other aspects of the show easily outweigh the negative.
Asake – O2 | 5/10 | Watch here
“I was a little bit drunk but I’m extremely disappointed”
Starting at an extreme low, the opening DJ was absolutely shocking. He wasn’t able to create a vibe at all, even with the DJ setup being in the middle of the crowd. The lack of stage presence from Asake was surprising. He avoided the centre of the stage, even with the Britney mic, which comes with an expectation of showmanship. There was no energy or choreography and was off-key at essential moments, even lip-syncing at other points. It was clear he put more energy into his Madison Square Garden performance in New York, and the London crowd deserved much more than they were given.
Central Cee – Koko | 4.5/10 | Watch here
“He admitted he didn’t know the words”
6 days after the release of ‘Can’t Rush Greatness’ , Central Cee sold out KOKO in Camden for his first performance of the highly anticipated album, gifting fans with free merch at the door; however, he did not know the words of the new music he had just released. It was clear he was fatigued and struggling on stage, with no MC or hype man to help him out in difficult moments. He performed his hits well and the crowd enjoyed them, but anything new seemed to look like a chore. Bringing out Skepta for ‘Ten’ was a notable moment, yet further weakened Central Cee’s stage presence due to being overshadowed by the performance quality of Skepta.
This one is a shame because fatigue was a huge part to play in why the show lacked quality. But remember, rest is important, and if you want greatness, you can’t rush it.
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