Bryson Tiller
22nd September 2017
Logan Campbell Centre, Auckland, New Zealand.
Review by Kate Taylor. Photography by Matt Henry Mendonca.
This just in: the Logan Campbell Centre roof has been reported missing and concerns for its welfare are very real, after Bryson Tiller completely tore it off last night. Kentucky’s millennial prince of hip hop and R&B jetted into Auckland for his first ever performance to his rabidly devoted fan base here and delighted those in attendance. Bursting onstage to ear-splitting screams, a stadium reminiscent light show and a sea of wavering phone lights; Tiller enveloped the whole stage using all of the space, bopping and kicking around and electrifying the room with his humble yet commanding presence.
Delivering a solid hour and 10min performance, Tiller appeared to perhaps be a little self-conscious to begin with, skating along with his backing track before settling into his set; but let’s be clear, this was no phone-it-in performance. It’s obvious that Tiller cares so deeply about his lyrical content that he wanted to ensure he could acclimatize to our response and his distance from home, before slaying the flows and the hooks on cuts from both 2015’s Trapsoul and this year’s killer True to Self, which he interchanged expertly to deliver an upbeat ride of a set.
Catching his breath, Tiller connected with his kiwi crew by saying “Ya’ll know this is my first time in New Zealand right? It took a long flight to get here and it’s 5 o’clock in the morning at home for me right now, so this feels pretty strange but I wanted to come out here and see what you people would all be like, and I never thought that this many people were listening to my music on this side of the world, so thank you – it’s a pleasure…a pleasure and an honour.”
Everything about Tiller is different to the influences he cites such as Kanye and Drake; refreshing the attending with stories of relationships, missed opportunities, gratitude for where he’s at now and the grind to be the best; which is a step out from his aforementioned counterparts who preach about their more millions, more problems lifestyle now that they’ve come up, as well as the fake love aspects of their fame. Tiller instead brings it back to the real, to the attempts to understand every day human interactions and providing a soundtrack for the youth here tonight giving them a dialogue for their romantic notions and interactions.
As the fly honeys and the fresh-till-death boys bopped, sang and danced; Tiller loomed large in front of his video screen which also was a refreshing departure from the usual fare you’ll clock at hip hop and R&B shows; as the snow-capped mountains, a swinging red light bulb and burning film slides gave extra weight to the emotional and deep content that Tiller delivers. Accompanied by his DJ’s and a live drummer, Tiller used this weighty live sound to add extra pop to his tracks. Astonished by the love he was getting back from the crowd, especially as the room loudly took over singing his hooks on Exchange and Somethin Tells Me; Tiller was left smiling and shaking his head in disbelief that he has so much love on this side of the globe, candidly saying “You all sound beautiful tonight!”
Tiller delivered a killer slab of my favourite tracks in rapid fire succession before threading in his ultra-cool feature verse on DJ Khaled and Rihanna’s Wild Thoughts then moving to my spirit animal track of the year Rambo, from 2017’s True to Self; which he encouraged his drummer to punctuate with a tidy little solo and then embellishment of snare hits to sound like Stallone’s gun rat-tat-tatting out to huge applause and adoration.
After popping back for just the one encore track before thanking us again and scooting away from the stage; it was distinct to all who witnessed this performance that next time; oh and you better believe after all the love he was shown that he’s going to make sure there’s a next time…next time there’s no way you’ll be seeing Tiller in a room this intimate, bringing a real treat for all the “day 1” fans to have experienced him in these close quarters before the deserved fame and accolades that await him become his legacy.
Were you there at the Logan Campbell Centre for this brilliant hiphop concert? Or have you seen Bryson Tiller perform live somewhere else before? Tell us about it in the comments below!
Note: Ambient Light was provided passes to review and photograph this concert. As always, this has not influenced the review in any way and the opinions expressed are those of Ambient Light’s only. This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase a product using an affiliate link, Ambient Light will automatically receive a small commission at no cost to you.
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