We’ve been living up to this moment since the release of That’s Showbiz Baby! back in September. After having our first taste of what was to come during JADE’s performance at Mighty Hoopla last summer in London, we knew we were in for a pop-packed mega performance. The pop star is unmistakably one of the most exciting acts in today’s pop music landscape. The way the former Little Mix member studies pop music and executes it in the best way possible undeniably shines through in everything she does. We gear up for a show filled with pop-tastic moments, dramatic theatre references and vocals ready to blow the roof off tonight’s venue, Fabrique, Milan. A small theatre curtain appears on stage. It’s so tiny and camp that this object alone sets the tone for the evening. The opener of the night is ‘FUFN (Fuck You For Now)’. JADE’s beautiful voice comes through the curtain, but the big reveal of the pop star still awaits. She makes sure no one passes out from shock and takes it step by step. First we get a glimpse of her arm, then her legs follow — and there she is, the main event of the night. Everyone familiar with the single knows the show is off to a powerful start: huge vocals, an even louder crowd and arms chanting in the air. As soon as we hear a loud alarm ringing through the building, we know what’s coming next. The tempo stays high as we dive straight into a favorite of Clean — one of the most underrated album tracks — ‘Headache’. The singer is bursting with energy and it’s clear she is here to give us the night of our lives. She knows very well that we spent our money to see a show, and that is exactly what she delivers. Hearing the crowd sing every single word to this deep-cut album track proves that tonight’s room is packed with true fans. JADE then puts on a silver tinsel coat and gives a shout-out to her idol Diana Ross before diving into the next section of the night. First up is ‘Before You Break My Heart’, which samples The Supremes, followed by our favorite single ‘Fantasy’. The song about sexual liberation sounds as beautiful as ever. She urges us to live as our purest selves and not limit ourselves because of others’ expectations. After this glamorous disco moment she becomes more serious as she introduces the next song. ‘Unconditional’ was written for her mum, who has been in and out of the hospital due to her battle with Lupus. Emotions run high as she scream-sings the pre-chorus over loud drums and guitar riffs. Her mum would be incredibly proud hearing this sung back to her by every audience member. For the next song the crowd gets a special job: acting as her backing vocalists. During the ending of the beautiful ‘Self Saboteur’ we take on the responsibility of singing the “Aah ha ah” section. It comes as no surprise that we take this job very seriously. While we chant along, JADE belts out the stunning final notes of the song and sounds as angelic as ever. Just like on the album, the concert smoothly transitions into ‘Lip Service’. The flirty and playful track seems to be a fan favourite, as loud screams introduce the song. One of the moments we have been waiting for most is hearing ‘Natural at Disaster’ live. After her Amazon exclusive live performance of the song, it became the track we were most excited to hear in person. We do miss the incredible choir that joined her in that recording, but it quickly becomes clear that JADE can more than hold her own. Big vocals fill the room and nearly blow the roof off Fabrique. The mic was on! The show nearly comes to an end, but JADE reassures us that a 15-minute encore is still waiting. The encore begins with a goosebump-inducing moment. The entire crowd is asked to turn around as JADE walks over to perform ‘Silent Disco’ right next to the sound engineer. Suddenly the singer is up close and personal, and we can’t believe how stunning she looks. Dressed in a red theatre-curtain dress, she has the perfect moment to showcase her vocal abilities. She hits high whistle notes reminiscent of Mariah Carey, serenading us while the room watches in complete silence. She then returns to the stage to perform the first single from the deluxe version of her debut album. Church bells ring while a gloomy red light fills the stage — it’s time for ‘Church’. The song celebrates her fanbase and welcomes everyone exactly as they are. Tonight perfectly reflects the safe space the singer has built for her fans: we are all one, singing the same words throughout the night. The evening can only end with one song — the smash hit ‘Angel Of My Dreams’. We thought we had already heard the crowd at its loudest, but we were clearly wrong. The moment the song begins, we scream our lungs out. During the third section of the track, the singer fully embraces camp: her dress becomes decorated with arrows, fake glittery blood and massive angel wings. These are the pop moments we live for. JADE proves she is a true student of pop music — and that she is the IT girl. Every moment of the show feels camp, pop and carefully thought out. It feels like just a glimpse of what the future holds for JADE. We had the time of our lives — so much so that we get to do it all over again tomorrow in Berlin.
It’s a gloomy Tuesday evening in Amsterdam. The sky has been packed with grey clouds and rain has accompanied us pretty much all day long. The city is in desperate need of some sunshine to lighten the mood and brighten the day. Luckily we have just the right recipe lined up for our evening: we’re about to see Naïka live in concert. The singer grew up all over the world. Due to her dad’s job, the family lived everywhere — from Kenya to Paris. She sings in English, French and Haitian Creole. The latter comes from her mum, who is from Haiti with Lebanese and Syrian-Palestinian roots. Her dad is French and was raised in Madagascar. This multicultural upbringing clearly reflects in her music. The singer calls her genre “world pop”, as it blends influences from all the places and sounds she encountered growing up. As soon as the spotlights hit the stage it becomes clear we’re in for a celebration of sun-soaked music. Plants decorate the stage, creating the perfect background for the singer kicking off the night. She opens the show with ‘WELCOME TO ECLESIA’. The song feels like an invitation into her world, especially when she sings, “If you feel like you don’t belong, we’ll take you in with open arms.” It quickly becomes clear to the audience that this space within these four walls is a safe place. We’re in for a treat with Naïka’s music. Each track invites us to swing our hips from left to right. The singer uses her strong pop vocals to fill the room with love and joy. Fan favourite ‘Ma Chérie’ has the audience singing at the top of their lungs. The backdrop transforms into glistening water, allowing for a dreamy acoustic start to the beloved song. It’s a delight hearing her sing in French — it almost feels as if she sounds even better in the language of love. We are then treated to a special intro for the next song. A personal video appears showing Naïka’s uncle whistling beautiful melodies. His whistle was unique because he had lost his front teeth, which gave it a distinctive tone that almost sounded like an instrument. This exact whistle was used in the song ‘For Gerard’ to honour her late uncle Gérard. The song is beautiful and feels like a warm hug during the night. As much as we are enjoying dancing to each track, we do start to feel that some songs sound quite similar. Luckily the show takes a turn when red lights start flickering to lead us into ‘MATADOR’. The song blasts fresh energy into the room. It almost sounds like something by ROSALÍA, and we instantly love hearing it live for the first time. As soon as we hear “Eh mpaka lage mpaka lage” we know we’re in for a big sing-along moment. The whole crowd joins in for her hit ‘African Sun’, creating a beautiful sense of togetherness in the room. This joyful atmosphere continues with two more highlights of the show. The crowd goes wild during ‘ONE TRACK MIND’, especially during the “Zo-bo-do-bo-do” part of the song. The same happens during ‘F.I.S.H’, with everyone singing loudly and proudly. Near the end of the show we reach our personal highlight of the night with ‘WHAT A DAY!’. The track shows a less commercial side of the singer, allowing her to showcase not only her creativity but also her songwriting skills. We love the depth of the lyrics, reflecting on how we all continue living life as if the world is not burning around us. When we reach the line “What a day for crime, kids are dying in Palestine. Blood is paving Congolese mines, and the world keeps going” every single person in the room shouts along. After a short departure the singer returns for the encore. Luckily it’s our favorite Naïka song: ‘6:45’. It was basically the main reason we came to see her live in the first place. The song is absolute perfection and she delivers it beautifully in a live setting. After this evening it becomes clear we should have had many more reasons than just this one song to see her perform live. Even though she hasn’t officially broken through in the charts yet, it makes perfect sense that she is already playing sold-out shows like the one tonight in Amsterdam. A true world-pop star.
With full excitement, we head straight from work to Berlin’s Columbiahalle. Tonight, we’re seeing Dijon live for the very first time. Fresh off an extremely successful year, he’s ready to bring his critically acclaimed album Baby to German fans. The record landed high on many 2025 end-of-year lists — and for good reason. Baby feels like listening to raw demos: full of emotion, creative freedom, and vulnerability. Almost as if you’re sitting in the studio with Dijon while the songs are being born. Naturally, this had us wondering how such an intimate album would translate in a live setting. The stage setup immediately answers that question. The show is designed like a studio, making it clear we won’t have to worry about how the album translates live — we are quite literally invited into Dijon’s creative space. The band and backing singers sit comfortably around him as he takes centre stage. Everyone is seated, reinforcing the feeling of intimacy, as if we’re witnessing a private recording rather than a concert. From the very first notes, Dijon sings as though he’s delivering these lyrics for the first time, his emotions pouring through his raspy voice. Throughout the album, his vocals are often layered with distortion and autotune — another potential concern going into the night. Would his voice hold up on a stage this size? The answer is a confident yes. Only occasionally does he allow his microphone to distort his vocals the way we hear on the record. Most of the time, we’re treated to Dijon’s voice in its purest form. He exceeds all expectations. What a voice. The tone is set early with ‘FIRE!’ and ‘Another Baby!’, the latter instantly locking the crowd in and getting bodies moving to its mesmerising production. Other up-tempo highlights include ‘HIGHER!’ and ‘Talk Down’ from his previous album. It becomes clear that many in the audience have been with the singers career for a while — the crowd sings along word for word, fully immersed in Dijon’s world. The setlist is near perfect, blending the strongest moments from Baby with a few carefully chosen throwbacks. The show unfolds like a journey: starting softly and gradually building toward emotional and sonic highs. By the final two songs before the encore, the room is on the verge of tears. First comes ‘Baby!’, the album’s title track, named after and dedicated to his son. Sung directly to him, the song tells the story of how Dijon met his wife and how their family came to be. It’s no surprise this is the most emotional moment of the night. Goosebumps spread across the room. What follows is one last emotional rollercoaster. Vocally, Dijon is at his absolute best here. Watching him sing his lungs out — ending the song in a raw, cathartic scream — we feel every emotion right alongside him. Walking into the concert, we didn’t quite know what to expect. Leaving the venue, we’re left in awe of Dijon’s ability to translate such deeply personal studio recordings into a shared live experience. Allowing himself to be completely vulnerable, he takes us along on his journey. What an honour it was to witness his undeniable talent up close.
Clean’s first concert of the year is a fact. We had the honour of seeing RAYE live in Berlin for the second stop of her This Tour May Contain New Music tour. That title alone had us buzzing in our seats, ready to hear what the singer had in store for us beyond her already massive hit singles. The last time we saw RAYE live was back in 2018, when she supported Rita Ora on a tour stop in Amsterdam. The evolution she’s gone through since then is unbelievable. We prepared for a night full of huge vocals, a big band, and a true celebration of music. It’s quite unheard of to go on tour to promote an album before the project has even dropped. It takes a whole lot of confidence to present a set full of brand-new music to an arena packed with fans who have never heard it before. RAYE took that risk, playing songs from her upcoming album This Music May Contain Hope for the very first time during her sold-out arena tour — literally receiving real-life first responses. Luckily, that confidence was backed by brilliant music that deserves to be experienced live, rather than heard flat through your favourite streaming platform. The night starts with the interlude ‘Girl Under The Grey Cloud’, visually translated into exactly that: a massive grey cloud enters the Uber Arena, hanging above the singer as she stands in front of big red curtains, waiting to be opened and reveal her band. The clouds quickly clear, hinting at better days to come. The show officially opens with a bang as RAYE launches into her current number-one hit ‘WHERE IS MY HUSBAND’, jokingly asking the crowd if her future husband might be in the building tonight. Whether he was present remains to be seen — but what we can confirm is that the crowd fell in love with her from the get-go. The brass section keeps the horns blowing throughout the first part of the show. Taking her sweet time with each song, RAYE moves through a run of up-tempo tracks, each treated to a dramatic ending. Among them, we’re introduced to two brand-new songs. Reassuring us not to be afraid of music we’ve never heard before, she kicks off ‘Skin & Bones’ by teaching the audience a few lyrics, easing us into the world of her second album. The crowd sings along as if the song has already topped the charts. Our reaction leaves RAYE smiling ear to ear as she moves into another new track. ‘Beware of the South London Lover Boy’ feels like it belongs in an old-school detective movie — a playful warning never to trust a South London boy on his blue eyes. It stands out as one of the highlights of the evening. RAYE jokingly talks her way through the show, warning us early on that she’s a chatty girl. Chaotic and messy in the best possible way, her monologues feel authentic and unscripted. At one point, she laughs into the microphone: “Oh gosh, I should really write a script for these song intros — I’m all over the place. Get it together, RAYE!”. For the next section of the show, she sets the scene both verbally and visually. While the spotlight stays fixed on her, the stage behind is transformed into a jazz club. Not only does RAYE paint the picture through storytelling — we are quite literally invited into Raye’s Jazz Club. This leads into the one and only cover of the night. She performs ‘Fly Me To The Moon’ with the band toning things down, creating a warm, intimate jazz atmosphere. That RAYE is classically trained has been clear all night, but here she truly shows it off — crooning and scatting effortlessly over the lush instrumentation. The mood perfectly sets up the next song. Before starting ‘Worth It’, she tells us it’s one of her favourite songs to sing, promising it will never leave her setlist in the years to come. The curtains close once more as the show slows down. RAYE tells us a story about her ex — she’s completely over him now, but the memories linger. ‘Nightingale Lane’ is a beautiful reflection on that relationship and the time it took to move on, knowing the two were never meant to last. With the audience fully locked in, she delivers two emotional ballads that leave many in tears. First comes ‘Ice Cream Man’, followed by the unreleased ‘I Know You’re Hurting’. Between songs, RAYE gently addresses the heavy topics they touch on, reassuring the crowd that you’re not alone in this. Tears are soon wiped away as she introduces ‘Click Clack Symphony’, a new song dedicated to the friends and family who drag you out of the house when you need a night of distraction from whatever life is throwing at you. This creates the perfect bridge into the final section of the night: the Night Club segment. Laser lights cut through the arena as the band leans into dance-heavy productions. RAYE runs through her commercial hits — the ones that came before her critically acclaimed era. We get ‘Secrets’, ‘BED’, ‘You Don’t Know Me’, ‘Prada’, and, surprisingly, ‘Black Mascara’ fits right in with the bunch. As the nightclub fades out, the atmosphere shifts once more, this time to something that feels like a Sunday morning in church. Another unreleased track, ‘Joy’, sees RAYE joined by her sisters — who also served as the support acts earlier in the night. With its gospel-tinged sound, the song feels destined to become the next single to dominate the charts. After a whopping two hours, RAYE leaves the stage — but not for long. She returns for her biggest single to date, ‘Escapism’. The crowd is louder than ever, singing along to every word as she thanks us for being there. Clean has seen hundreds of live shows, with many unforgettable highlights. RAYE, however, shoots straight to the very top of our favourite concerts ever. It felt like witnessing history — like watching a legend in the making. Without a doubt, we were treated to one of the most talented performing artists in music today. What a night.