AJ Tracey
AJ.. was great, his rapping skills are second to none, spitting out bars with machine gun precision.
The last time I came to this venue was to see Fredo, a gig which although good was marred by several fights inside and outside of the venue, and a general air of aggression. Unfortunately, because of this gig, getting into the LCR last night was an extremely lengthy process. It was an hour after doors opening that I finally arrived at the front of the queue, where pockets were emptied and I was checked over with a metal detector not once, but twice. This is by far the tightest security I have ever experienced at a live music event, but the upshot was it felt safe and welcoming. All I would say is if this is the new normal for certain types of events, the doors should be opened earlier as it doesn’t seem right to spend a third of your night standing outside, especially given the cost of tickets.
Finally inside, the floor was already full so I lurked near the back and began to get into the night. The DJ was on, and soon introduced support act Yung Fume. Fume has been around for a couple of years and judging by his performance he already has a lot of fans, not surprising given that some of his videos have over 1 million views. Although he did that curious thing of rapping along to his own voice on the backing track, he impressed me quite a lot, and got the whole floor bouncing along. With his own headline dates coming in April getting to see him live was definitely an unexpected bonus.
AJ Tracey’s show at the Waterfront in 2017 was one of that year’s best, grime was massive, and his trajectory has continued in an upward curve ever since. Grime is no longer the prevalent music though, and AJ’s sound has changed accordingly, introducing elements of trap and RnB, sounds that personally I’m less into. What I do admire though is his how he’s grown as an artist, it feels natural rather than forced, and he is taking his career in a direction of his choosing. I’ve commented on this before, but so much of the enjoyment of these nights comes from the shared experience. The crowd don’t react in the way they would at a rock gig for example; much of the set is watched through a phone screen, in order to let others know they are there, and when a song ends there isn’t really any applause even though the crowd were fully into it. It’s slightly odd, but just the way it is. AJ himself was great, his rapping skills are second to none, spitting out bars with machine gun precision.
The stage set up was simple, just a backdrop with his new logo in heavy metal font, and effective use of lights with each song colour coded. The music was crisp and clear, the bass heavy, but I have to say the energy levels were nowhere near what they were at the Waterfront, and from my vantage point at the back of the crowd it was only really the people on the dancefloor who were getting down. The level of crowd interaction depended on how hard the tune banged – a seated AJ performing Country Star was cool, but low key. AJ whipping the energy crew into a frenzy on older classics like Pasta and the whole room was in on the action. New songs like Butterflies and Necklace are good, but the harder songs like Triple S, Blacked Out and awesome set closer Doing It are definitely far more my thing.
I could resist no longer and squeezed my way onto the back of the floor, and for the final 20 minutes or so I was enveloped in an atmosphere of positivity. AJ is at a level where he comfortably filled the LCR. He is at a point where he can do whatever he pleases and his fanbase goes with him. I may not always chime with his musical choices, but I’m completely sold on his talents as a rapper, performer, role model and increasingly, pop star.
