You can’t go wrong with a good DJ at the start of a show. Back in September, Tinashe had announced a contest she would hold to give DJs a chance to win their spot on her Match My Freak Tour and perform a set at the beginning of the show.
I never caught this DJ’s name, and didn’t see a banner or anything else that would tell me who this person was, but she was phenomenal.
*EDIT: The DJ was Robin Banks
The minute she started mixing, the crowd began to dance along while still holding their conversations. It was definitely refreshing to hear a DJ set after waiting for the show to start, and her skills in beatmatching and transitions were certainly greatly appreciated by those who engaged with her by singing along to the song being played and cheering once the next track was slowly introduced.
She mixed a variety of different genres together, but R&B was the main focus, as the upcoming artists belonged to that genre. Whether it was older classics or fresh music that has been gaining popularity, this DJ did a great job of getting the crowd to move.
Raveena
The very second that the clock struck 8:00, an instrumentalist sat in front of the keyboard and began playing a beautiful tune. Soon after, Raveena stepped out on stage as well, waving a quick hello to her audience before starting to sing her song, If Only.
The crowd immediately took to Raveena, admiring her lovely voice. They cheered loudly for her when she announced it was her first time performing in Montreal.
Raveena and her instrumentalist had great energy together on stage. They often interacted, whether it be sitting on the same piano bench or Raveena having the bass held up in front of her so she could pluck a few strings.
The pink and red hues that lit up the stage suited Raveena’s feminine style. She danced around on stage, barefoot, with a beautiful cream-coloured dress that flowed with each one of her movements. The fantastical-looking tree behind her gave a fey kind of vibe to me, like she should be twirling around on a bed of moss as she performed, especially when she laid her back down on the fake moss surrounding said tree.
The range in Raveena’s voice drew me deeper as her set went on. Her vocals were impressive and unique, filled with passion and soul. The audience seemed like they felt the same. They swayed along to her slower songs and danced to the more upbeat ones. They cheered loudly at the end of every track performed, showing the great love they had for her.
Halfway through her set, the vibe changed slightly once she sported a headset microphone, allowing her full motion of her arms to dance. She moved with her heart on her sleeve, fluid and experienced. You could feel the admiration floating around in the air as everyone in attendance had their full attention on her.
Raveena’s personality shone brightly both when she spoke to her audience and when she sang her beautiful songs. She told the crowd that she’s grateful that this was her first experience performing in Montreal because she felt very welcomed by the crowd. She encouraged everyone to go see her at the merch table after her set, as she wanted to meet as many people as possible. She seemed very genuine and sweet; even her speaking voice was wonderful to the ears.
She dedicated her last song, Rise, to the oppressed people in Palestine. A gorgeous song about refusing to ignore the wrongdoings shown on the news, about rising up and being loud and helpful.
Raveena’s set was clearly well received by Montreal. Once her set had come to a conclusion, the crowd in MTelus offered a heavy amount of cheering and whistling as farewell. She expressed her appreciation for everyone’s attention once more before exiting off stage, leaving a great impression on us all. I’m sure whoever didn’t already know about her had to have become an instant fan after seeing her grace and talents with their own eyes.
Tinashe
The house lights shut off once again, and it was finally time for the final, highly anticipated set. The party immediately got started with an electronic remix of Nasty blasting through the speakers. The large screen in the back of the stage displayed various glamour shots of Tinashe, serving face and body. Soon enough, Tinashe herself was found on stage with four male dancers accompanying her.
She got right into it, starting her set with Getting No Sleep, the second track off her 2024 album Quantum Baby. Her background dancers had tons of energy, expertly moving to each beat to every song performed. The crowd ate up everything Tinashe did on stage, captivated by her voice and cheering loudly when she showed off her dancing capabilities. This concert was truly a party, flashing lights illuminated the venue and the heavy bass shook the floor. Every song that was played elicited grateful cheering from the crowd.
She started her set with tracks from a variety of different albums, songs such as Needs, Link Up, and Bouncin’. The visuals that played on the screen were perfectly suited to the song they were assigned to, giving an electrifying effect to the visual aesthetics going on.
Each song flowed seamlessly into the other, which was a nice touch that kept the “dancing in the club” feeling going strong throughout her entire set. Given that, though, Tinashe had limited crowd engagement during her set. Despite it, the few times that she requested the crowd to wave their arms side to side or to clap along to the beat, her audience gladly did as she asked. This created small moments of crowd inclusion that brought a smile to everyone’s face. It was clear to see that the strangers that surrounded me were having the time of their lives during this show.
Tinashe’s set was insanely stimulating; my attention was grabbed onto tightly, and I could not pry my eyes off of what I was seeing. The dancers added so much personality and texture to each song that they performed their choreography to, and with Tinashe’s intoxicating voice travelling through the venue to bless everyone’s ears, it was a well-thought-out recipe to engage the viewer.
The large screen on stage did more than just display visuals; there were occasional moments during the set where a camera was pointed at Tinashe and her dancers, offering the audience different perspectives and angles that they would not be able to see from where they stood.
This gave the performers great opportunities to include the crowd as well, like during Cross That Line; one of the background dancers held the camera that broadcasted live onto the screen. He went around filming Tinashe and the other dancers, even turning the camera towards the audience, including them all in the moment. Everyone cheered loudly once they saw themselves on screen, jumping excitedly, waving or dancing along. It was one of my favourite moments from this show.
Towards the end of her set, Tinashe dedicated a few songs to her “day ones” in the crowd, and played a few tracks from her first two albums Aquarius (2014) and Nightride (2016). A good amount of people sang along to Party Favors, All Hands on Deck, and 2 On like their lives depended on it, showing their adoration for Tinashe and her earlier work.
Of course, Tinashe had to end her set with her song that blew up soon after its release; her tour is named after an iconic lyric in said song. The moment that Nasty started playing, the entire crowd went crazy, singing louder than they had sung all night. And the audience somehow cheered even louder when Tinashe started dancing along, moving her hips to the beat. It was the perfect end to the perfect setlist.
Tinashe gave her audience a heartfelt goodbye, thanking everyone for their energy and signing a few things that people up front handed to her. Montreal sent her off with cheers of pure adoration, continuing to cheer well after the house lights turned back on and Tinashe was long gone backstage. Everyone left the venue dancing along to the ringing in their ears, having clearly just had an immense amount of fun. Tinashe certainly left us wanting more after such a well-thought-out performance, and I hope she makes it back to Montreal for another concert soon.
Review – Jamie Siddall
Photos – Andres Amaya
