Louis Tomlinson took to the stage at Manchester's Co-op Live last night, Europe's biggest indoor arena, and I have never seen a musician more grateful, says Daniel Bird.
A Star in His Own Right
Louis Tomlinson may have performed at the biggest stadiums in the past, but on his own, he has proven he is a star. The Doncaster lad last night headlined Manchester's Co-op Live, the largest indoor arena in Europe. While some may say, 'Well, he has performed at Wembley,' yes, he has, but this time it was his solo name on the headline slot.
I have followed Louis since his One Direction days, across the country, often attending the same tour several times. But seeing Louis on his own is beyond special. I have met him a few times over the years, and despite his fame, success, and bank balance, he has not changed since that first audition.
Now, I cannot imagine what it is like walking out onto a stage and seeing 23,500 screaming fans. The closest I have gotten is standing on a stage in front of a couple of thousand, but Louis handled it with such ease.
A Grateful Performer
Walking into the Co-op last night for Louis' How Did We Get Here? World Tour, I felt proud of South Yorkshire's finest export. He handled it with such grace and at times looked as though he could not believe it himself. 'Look at this f**king room,' Tomlinson told the sold-out crowd. He added: 'Rooms like this just blow my mind, every single time – look at what we have created.'
I cannot lie, I was standing in the middle of the standing floor, and even I was blown away when I turned around to see the entire audience. Also, we need to talk about the setlist. Tomlinson really delivered with that.
Setlist Highlights
Opening with Lemonade, the lead single from his latest album, How Did I Get Here?, it was essentially just banger after banger, which worked perfectly. The entire setlist had something for everybody.
A sold-out crowd is no easy feat, especially in such a huge arena, but standing there on stage with his backing vocalist, Isaac Anderson, and an acoustic guitar, Louis took control of the entire audience with his acoustic rendition of Defenceless, one of my favourite songs from his solo discography. My word, that man can sing.
I have seen some huge musicians in my time, all with massive stage productions, but seeing Louis up there, just his voice, no playback, and an acoustic guitar, truly proves that Nicole Scherzinger was right to create One Direction and put Louis in the band.
Every single person in the arena was silent to the point you could have heard a pin drop, which is extremely rare, especially given Louis' high-energy performances throughout the rest of the evening. It was the same for Just Hold On, his debut single, an EDM track with Steve Aoki, but Louis performed the acoustic version, and everybody around me had tears in their eyes, especially during Dark to Light. What a performance.
A Special Show in Manchester
For Louis himself, he admitted it was a 'f**king special show' in the city where he first auditioned for The X Factor over a decade ago. 'I have got a lot to thank this city for,' he said, adding: 'It was a special show tonight, but I always knew it was going to be, thank you for bringing the f**ing vibes,' he told the crowd before performing Miss You, one of my top five Louis tracks.
To this day, it baffles me how Louis could ever be criticised for any of his work. He is inspiring, he is the cheeky chap from Donny who has done well for himself, provides a platform for upcoming musicians, and goes out of his way to engage with his fans, something not many artists do. But they could learn a lot from Louis.
Attending the show with one of my best mates made the night even better, as we met through One Direction just after their second album. Towards the end of the evening, it looked as though Louis was getting ready to wind down, but oh no, he went on to shock us all by performing No Control, one of 1D's best songs. All I can say is, we had no control – we were transported back to our teens and early 20s, which was the serotonin boost we all needed.
Support Acts
I also need to shout out his support act, ADMT, also from Doncaster, whom I interviewed recently. Adam was absolutely sensational, and you could tell just how happy he was to be on that stage, belting out 'Have you ever been to Yorkshire?' from his track North. What a guy! Pale Waves were also epic. Louis really pulled it out of the bag with those decisions.
So, Louis, thank you for a smashing night – once again, you have excelled yourself, which I did not think was possible. As he would say himself, Louis, you smashed it, lad.
