It’s just your average Wednesday night, and Clash is floating somewhere above the Thames in a cable car. The rain is tumbling, the wind is blustering, and – if we’re honest – there’s no guarantee that we’re getting to the other side of this river. Yet if strikes can’t stop Lizzo, then we’ve no excuse – as the cable car gently ascends to Earth, we’re glad to be in one piece, and one step closer to catching the opening night of her run at The O2 Arena.
She is, of course, a force of nature. As the lights dim there’s a palpable sense of anticipation from the crowd, which – transport issues to one side – is actually close to capacity. Bursting onstage in a wave of energy, sequins, and stellar moves, Lizzo plunges into ‘The Sign’ and then ‘2 Be Loved (Am I Ready)’. A breathless opening gambit, the set plunges into bona fide hits – ‘Boys’ – and fan favourites alike, Lizzo constantly keeping fans on their toes.
A true all-rounder, Lizzo is able to move from fast-spitting rap flows to genteel R&B balladry. Reclining on a luxurious couch, she dedicates the softer mid-section to ‘Jerome’ – “we’re all got a Jerome, haven’t we?” – before switching it up once more on a superb cover of Lauryn Hill’s immortal ‘Doo Wop (That Thing)’. Indeed, it’s far from the only cover in the set – there’s also an unstoppable, muscular take on Chaka Khan’s disco jewel ‘I’m Every Woman’.
Starting promptly, it’s a slightly stripped back set. “Everything needs to run on time,” she vows, “because I don’t know about you, but it took my three hours to get here!”
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A truly relatable queen, Lizzo sits at the centre of the Venn Diagram between determination and talent, between explosive energy and the ability to meet challenges head-on. Every single person here seems to view their own lives, their own issues, through her lens – it imbues the gig with a remarkable energy, an incredible sense of union.
‘Everybody’s Gay’ is a celebration outcry, before Lizzo closes the show with a golden run of hits. ‘Truth Hurts’, ‘Good As Hell’, and her impeccably catchy ear-worm ‘Juice’ stand out, before she closes the curtain with the audio fireworks of ‘About Damn Time’.
An artist who had to wait for her chance at fame, Lizzo seized it with both hands. A twerking, rapping, flute-playing success story, she’s excelled at multiple lanes only to find herself out there on her own. Few can match her – blessed with a twinkling cheekiness, she’s both every woman and Wonder Woman. On this form, you begin to feel that Glastonbury have made a major mis-step in making Lizzo sub-headliner – in truth, no stage is big enough to contain her.
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Words: Robin Murray
