Review and Photo Copyright © Amy Harrison
Blackbear blew up this summer with his new song ‘Hot Girl Bummer’ which, he says, is an anthem for all those people who aren’t out here posing in their bikinis. While the new anthem was climbing the Billboard Top 100 (peaking at 56 in the US and earning more than 100 million Spotify streams in less than 60 days), Blackbear brought his ‘Dead To The World’ Tour to Europe.
After a month in Europe, the tour ended on Wednesday 30th October with an amazing sold out show at Manchester Academy. The room was full to the brim with Blackbear stans whose incredible energy brought the venue to life. The show kicked off with Gabriel Black, best known for his collaborative song ‘Dead Yet’ with Phem. Black’s set was the perfect warm up for what was to come and anyone who wasn’t a fan of his before the show, it’s safe to say they were quickly converted. For his last song, Black bought out Phem who also won over the crowd with their steamy performance of ‘Dead Yet’.
Before Blackbear came on stage, the energy in the room was absolutely buzzing. The singer opened with his slightly older stuff ‘Chateau’ and ‘Miss the Old U’, before causing an actual mosh pit during his ballad ‘1 Sided Love’. Several pits later, the set ended with his new anthem and third most listened to song on Spotify, ‘Hot Girl Bummer’ and even after the encore, people still wanted more. Even Blackbear admitted that his local American crowds are nothing compared to those in Europe, and Manchester was no exception. With all four UK dates selling out and how insanely his Brit fans stan him, hopefully it’s not long until Blackbear is back in the UK again.
Blackbear was supported on tour by Gabriel Black