A night of poise, polish and power from the Lady Gaga-in-waiting
Rina Sawayama Electric Brixton, London SW2
★★★★★
Apop superstar is born. Rina Sawayama may have had to delay her tour for 18 months due to Covid, but the wait has served only to raise expectations about the 31-yearold Japanese-british singer-songwriter to fever pitch. And on the small stage of the former Fridge nightclub in Brixton, the singer put on a performance of such poise, polish and power that she can rightly be called the voice of Gen Z.
Sawayama’s music is a dizzying mixture of pop, nu-metal, R&B, dance and rock. In spite of her retro leanings, she sounds like the future.
Sawayama performed it as though she was playing arenas already. Her production team managed to squeeze two tiers and a staircase on to the Electric’s tiny stage. We had dry ice, wind machines and Beyoncé poses. She changed costume four times and danced fantastically tight routines with a pair of backing dancers. On the strength of this show, Sawayama is a Lady Gaga-in-waiting.
Arguably, Sawayama’s greatest asset is her connection with her audience. She deals with tricky topics such as climate change and mental health, almost as mini manifestos, before drawing her fans in for a metaphorical group hug. Sawayama identifies as bisexual and pansexual, and nothing summed up her outlook last night better than Chosen Family, a ballad about people not needing to be related to relate to each other. “You are my chosen family/ So what if we don’t look the same? We’ve been going through the same thing,” she sang. The crowd’s impassioned singing reduced at least one band member to tears.
Sawayama lived in Japan until she was five before her family moved to London. She went to Magdalene College, Cambridge (she didn’t think much of it, by all accounts) and is already proving an agent for change in the music business. Despite having lived in the UK for 26 years, she discovered last year that she wasn’t eligible for the Brit Awards or the Mercury Prize as she isn’t a British passport holder (she has indefinite leave to remain). After she highlighted the issue, her fans started an online campaign and the British Phonographic Industry changed its rules to allow non-british artists who live in the UK to be eligible for its awards. It’s a telling story about her resolve and popularity.
At one point during the concert, a clip of a speech by the Labour MP Zarah Sultana was played. It was about “standing up and fighting back” and was met with rapturous applause. Suddenly, it became about more than just music. Whatever your politics, it was a powerful moment. Perhaps after Wembley, she should give Westminster a go.