Janelle Monáe is a 21st century icon. Her recent performance at the Manchester Aviva studios was a one to remember. With a euphoric mix of powerful hip-hop, futuristic pop and reggae, Monáe delivered an exceptional performance of virtuosic vocals, stylish outfits and poignant messages, all scored and supported by classy brass and a screaming guitar from her fabulous band. A defiant act of rebellion against the corporatisation of music and the voiceless pop stars that proliferate today’s music scene.
Adorned head to toe in a bouquet of yellow and orange flowers, the ten-time Grammy nominated artist made her entrance a grand one. Monáe announced that she wanted to make all those who weren’t here jealous; confident words before any songs had been sung! She started the set with a belting performance of ‘Flow’, following up with ‘Champagne Shit’, two polished R&B hits off The Age of Pleasure, her latest album, both featuring soaring vocal performances backed by punchy fanfares and a pulsing percussive groove.
Chapter Two sees the first costume change of the evening, as she adopts a striking black and white overcoat, sunglasses and red beret, a nod to her former musical alter-ego Cindi Mayweather. Monáe’s episodic set allows her previous characters to make an appearance, as she tells the story of grappling with issues of identity and belonging. She starts with Chapter One: ‘A Thousand Versions of the Self’, dressed in her stunning and visually striking flower dress, before several costume changes. She finishes her story in a state of acceptance of who we are as individuals in Chapter Four: ‘Paradise Found’ and Chapter Five: ‘Surfing on the Sun’. By this point she's dressed in a suit and brimmed hat, evoking Michael Jackson-esque looks, mimicking some of his dance moves too, to deliver her thrilling pop rock finale. In this way Monáe’s set puts a delightfully postmodern twist to the concert formula that is highly meta but in no way contrived or gimmicky.
In Chapter Three, ‘(T)high Vibrations’, Monáe mellows the crowd, another costume change brings a change of vibe, as ‘Lipstick Lover’ gets the crowd swaying to some reggae beats. The combination of Monáe’s enthusiasm and the quality of the band make it impossible not to dance, and soon enough she has the whole audience grooving. Seizing the moment, Monáe invites some of Manchester’s finest onto the stage to give them a moment in the spotlight. This sums up the entire performance as one big party atmosphere, a party we are all welcome to and where we all have to play our part. Monáe was not afraid to make use of her extraordinary stage presence later in the show as she divided the audience up into a makeshift choir, adopting the role of a Freddy Mercury style conductor to a series of vocal call and responses that reminded the audience of her extraordinary singing abilities, and why it was her and not us on stage for the most part!
Of course, Monáe left the best until last. After rapturous applause at the end of her set and cheers for an encore, the band came out for one final dance. They restarted with ‘Make Me Feel,’ the epitome of a perfect pop song, before rolling back the years by playing paired back versions of ‘Cold War’ and ‘Tightrope’, teasing the crowd for more, purposefully restraining the electric potential of these songs, baiting us into demanding yet another encore. She succeeded and the crowd went wild once more for Janelle Monáe to give us one final show before the night was over. On this Monáe delivered to spectacular effect, coming back on stage for one final song in ‘Come Alive’. After the first verse, once more playfully restrained, she asked the audience to get low. Then lower. Just a little bit more. Alright, that’s good! The entire crowd were crouched as low as they could go, before the chorus slammed in releasing the tension as the crowd sprung up like bottle rockets for one last dance, Monáe leading by example as she had done throughout the whole night, dazzling the audience with her flashy moves, getting the crowd going with her energetic stage presence and dazzling with her emphatic vocal display.
It's seriously impressive how Monáe can seamlessly pick and mix from her discography to tell the crowd her story of acceptance and the discovery of joy without making anything seem contrived. It’s almost as if she had planned each of her albums for this purpose, and only now she can be fully appreciated as the story concludes in the finding of acceptance of her identity and the embracing of joy and pleasure. “Joy is a birthright,” she proclaimed, “and I want that for all of us, not some of us”. Part of embracing pleasure in your life starts first with being comfortable in your own skin. After coming out as pansexual in 2018 and describing herself as non-binary and a “free-ass motherfucker,” Monáe’s performance should be seen as a personal story of self-discovery and acceptance, wherein she encourages all her audience to “go out and feel even more empowered to walk in your greatness, to walk in your uniqueness, no matter what you may look like.” She triumphantly reminds us that “you are one of one and you need to always remember that." As much as this is a musical theatre Monáe is a social activist, who delivers her message through the format of music and good vibes.
People who haven’t heard of Janelle Monáe do not know what they are missing out on. Despite being an iconic figure, with a cult following and outspoken on issues of social justice, relatively few people listen to her compared to her counterparts. Partly due to her exercising of artistic freedom to take her music where she sees fit, not always to market it at what’s popular now. She’s not afraid to experiment, musically and artistically. In a world where artists are being governed by executives at record labels and have given up their right to artistic independence, Monáe reminds us of the influential power of artistic freedom; to take her music in any direction she sees fit, and to speak out on the matters she cares for.
In this concert alone, Monáe spoke out on issues of racism, instances of genocide, and the queer experience. Monáe uses her platform to deliver a message for change and hope, to promise to fight for the powerless in society. Monáe’s defiant artistic independence is inspiring and shone through in her live performance. In a final call to the crowd, she reminds the audience of their own individual power. In ‘Tightrope’ Monáe sings “you either follow or you lead”. By calling on the audience to walk in our greatness and uniqueness, she is calling us to follow her likeness and to lead by what we do, to make our voice heard and to celebrate our individuality, which ought to be protected at all costs. This is Monáe the activist’s message, delivered gracefully and with purpose through the medium of music, straight into our soul.
