Tom Talks #21: Stormzy-Heavy Is The Head Tour, Manchester (A Spectacle to Behold, Shame About the Crowd)

 

Artist: Stormzy (with support from DJ Rachel Anson)

Genre: UK Rap/Grime

Venue: AO Arena

Location: Hunts Bank, Manchester

Welcome back to Tom Talks and today we're covering Stormzy's long awaited stadium tour stop in Manchester. After being delayed from 2020 due to the pandemic, the show is finally here and it certainly delivered as a spectacle and a musical performance.

The Arena itself was hugeeeeeee! I have never sat in the high stands of an arena before and I must say, I did fear for myself and for those in the crowd, as it was dark and the ground to walk to your seat, was narrow and left me being very careful. Besides slightly fearing for my life, the atmosphere and capacity can only be bettered by the O2 Arena.

Rachel Anson (Support DJ)

To get the crowd vibing, we had Rachel Anson and the hype MC getting people in the mood. They played a variety of anthems from 00's classics like 50 Cent 'In Da Club,' to current UK hits like Digga D 'Woi.' There was plenty of great tracks on display here and showed that the sister of Stormzy, knew what songs to get the public hyped; an essential skill for a DJ.

As for the crowd itself, I don't mind a bit of energy, but between the screaming girls almost destroying my ear drums and the people dancing with their tops off at a camera, it was a bit of a hinderance on the experience and showed why 9 times out of 10, I get a standing ticket. But, I still very much enjoyed the show and had a great time.

Stormzy kicked off the show with the high energy anthems like album opener "Big Michael," the grime number "Cold" and of course the song that many first heard from Stormz, "Know Me From." These were all tracks to get people on their feet and they certainly did that, showing off Stromzy's back catalogue of bangers.

Things then went in a more calmer direction, with the Gospel inspired "Crown," and album cuts like "Rachel's Little Brother" and "Do Better" showing his more emotional side and his singing ability. It highlighted to me the versatility of Michael Omari and that this guy can actually sing, not needing autotune. This showed me why he has such a varied audience of people and that he will continue to improve and make even more engaging music.

Following an emotional performance of the chorus of his break-up anthem "Lessons," the bangers returned including his recent collab with Dave "Clash." (Sadly Dave was not there to perform.) Other bangers like "Wiley Flow," where Stormzy and DJ Tiny were in the air and "Shut Up," where our leading man donned some comical sunglasses, showed that he could still give the grime fans such as myself, what they wanted. I will say the production and visual element of the show was pretty great, including the big crown used during his performance of the aforementioned track and the videos behind him, which fit with the message of the songs being played.

To end the show, we got the big hits including a 'stomping' performance of "Big For Your Boots," a gospel choir backed and powerful display of "Blinded By Your Grace" and of course to end proceedings the mega hit "Vossi Bop," with the crowd chanting the lyrics that showed their disdain for the current government. We also got a video which teased album number 3, which will include another collaboration with Dave, which got the crowd very excited.

This was my third time seeing Stormzy, having previously seen him at Made Festival in 2016 and Leeds Festival last year. Both those performances displayed the performing quality and the amount of big anthems he had and here he did that to a more mainstream audience, alongside some impressive visuals he had clearly spent time getting right.

My few qualms are with a crowd, who kinda got on my nerves, but not enough to ruin the performance. I was also surprised to not see Aitch who featured on "Pop Boy," the only track that was not performed from the latest album. Still this was a show to behold and one I recommend you watch if tickets are still available.

Thanks for reading this blog and I hope you enjoyed! If you went to this show or one of Stormzy's other tour dates, let me know your views on that show in the comments. Until next time, this has been another Tom Talks!

4/5

Stormzy will be performing at Birmingham Utilita Arena (March 23rd), Bournemouth International Centre (March 24th), The O2 in London (March 27th, 28th and 29th), the 3Arena in Dublin (April 1st and 2nd) and the OVO Hydro in Glasgow. (April 4th)