There are few events more exciting than seeing your favorite artist live, let alone two of them for the price of one concert ticket. Even more exciting is when you’re surprised with two more of your favorite artists at the same event.
On Monday, September 23, I took a four hour train ride to New York City to see Charli xcx and Troye Sivan perform at their SWEAT tour. Sure, it would’ve made more sense to see them perform in a closer location like Baltimore, but when I got the notification that tickets went on sale in April earlier this year, I jumped at purchasing the tickets closest to my hometown as soon as I could.
For context, I’m a huge fan of Charli xcx. For years, she has been one of my most listened-to artists, and her music is a large, meaningful portion of my listening history. I arrived at the train station filled with too much nervous excitement to eat and my body shaking with anticipation. I was not let down at all.
Opening the show with a set by experimental pop artist Shygirl, the atmosphere of Madison Square Garden was parallel to that of a nightclub from when I first entered. Then, the main show began with Sivan performing tracks “Got Me Started” and “What’s the Time Where You Are?” from his latest album “Something to Give Each Other,” as well as a throwback to his hit “My My My!” from his 2018 LP “Bloom.” With the “BRAT green” and Charli xcx merchandise infiltrating the crowd, one would think that Troye’s set would be less exciting for the rowdy crowd. Conversely, Sivan and his background dancers brought us to our feet immediately. I knew I was in for a treat.
After Troye’s first set, a remix of Charli xcx’s “365” began to play as curtains displaying the cover art of the British singer’s eighth album “BRAT” formed a square shape on the stage. Then, the moment I was waiting for finally happened. The beat dropped, leading to the curtains dropping and revealing the show’s other headliner. I was ecstatic.
Charli began with an unreleased remix of “365” featuring opening act Shygirl before leading into other tracks from “BRAT”, “360” and “Von Dutch.” This pattern of each artist performing three or four of their songs back and forth continued for most of the night, with new props such as an inflatable bed and a chair for a lap dance coming on stage for Troye. Charli, on the other hand, made sure to perform all around the arena, going from both sides of the stage and platforms in front of screens to a cage under the stage and a multi-level structure at the back of the set.
I’ve been lucky enough to attend many concerts in my life, but I cannot remember the last time I was a part of an audience that was as electric as that of the SWEAT tour. The show was already incredible, but it was cemented as an unforgettable and magical night with the surprise appearances of social media sensation-turned-popstar Addison Rae and indie pop icon Lorde.
Addison Rae has had more than one collaboration with Charli in the past year, both collaborating on the track “2 Die 4” from Rae’s debut EP and Charli’s “Von Dutch remix” with producer A.G. Cook. Thus, many fans of Charli were familiar with her and her work. Rae performed the live debut of her newest single “Diet Pepsi” with Charli and Troye in front of thousands of fans exploding with excitement. Addison Rae then performed “Von Dutch remix” alongside Charli xcx, with the audience going wild as they synchronized with her during her viral high-pitched scream during the bridge of the track.
The other surprise of the night came when multiple-time Grammy winner Lorde appeared on stage to sing her verse in the “Girl, so confusing remix” that has taken the internet by storm. As a huge fan of both Charli and Lorde, the best way I could encapsulate my reaction was similar to that of a family seeing an active-duty member of the military for the first time in years–and I was not alone. The crowd erupted into cheers so loud that I couldn’t hear the popstar sing.
The “Girl, so confusing remix” is one of my favorite tracks from Charli xcx’s most recent “BRAT” era, and Lorde is another artist whose music I adore. My excitement when the collaboration was announced was already extreme, so to see both artists perform the song together live had me over the moon.
For the remainder of the show, Charli xcx and Troye Sivan continued to perform back and forth, both digging deep into their discographies to play popular songs from throughout their careers. The show concluded with the two headliners performing their recently released collaborative remix of Charli’s “Talk Talk,” eventually leaving the stage to cheers that were even louder than when the show began.
From the buzzing audience and satisfying setlist to surprise appearances and enthralling stage presence from both Charli xcx and Troye Sivan, I left Madison Square Garden on a high that I can only hope to get from another concert in the future. As a fan, I was more than satisfied, and as a lover of live performances, I was electrified. This show shut down any doubt that Charli xcx and Troye Sivan were not worth their breakout success in recent months.
The SWEAT tour was sincerely the greatest concert I have ever attended and I cannot wait to see where Charli xcx and Troye Sivan go from here.