After being a fan of Troye Sivan for over five years, you can imagine my excitement when I managed to snatch a ticket to his Bloom tour. Troye Sivan is an Australian singer, actor and YouTuber. He is currently touring for his second studio album, Bloom, which was released on August 31, 2018. Sivan’s two opening acts were Carlie Hanson and Kim Petras. Also in attendance was Troye’s mother, Laurelle Mellet and Bobby Berk, the interior designer from the Netflix reality show, Queer Eye. The crowd cheered eagerly to Bobby’s dancing from the balcony and to Mama Mellet’s humble waves and kisses.
18-year-old pop singer, Carlie Hanson, opened the show with her hit single, “Why Did You Lie?” Her scrawled, edgy backdrop was reminiscent of pop-punk garage bands, an image that was reinforced by the hard-hitting drums and cymbals. Hanson also played her new single, “Toxins”, as well as classic teenage rebellion anthem, “Us”. Her power and energy was consistent throughout the set, and she got the crowd clapping and singing along.
Next up was Kim Petras, a true pop princess. The crowd screamed to “I Don’t Want It At All” and “Heart to Break”, her two top hits. Petras’ dancing and giggles had the whole crowd going wild. Her electric production makes every song a summer bop, and it even brings to mind the vocals of Charli XCX and Britney Spears.
Not before long, it was time for Troye. He came onstage in a stunning red suit with the curtains drawn behind him, opening with “Seventeen”, his poignant lead track on the album. Right before the chorus, the curtains opened to expose the flashing stage lights. He continued on to the title track, “Bloom”, and one of his catchiest anthems, “Plum”. Sivan then threw it back to “Heaven”, from his debut album, Blue Neighborhood. He asked the crowd to sing along to the bridge, explaining that the lyric “So I’m counting to fifteen” was about him waiting to turn fifteen years old before coming out.
A few songs later, he saw someone in the front FaceTiming a friend, and he took the phone from her to say hi. He then realized he recognized the girl, Ally, and proceeded to have an entire conversation with her. Sivan is one of the most down-to-earth pop stars today, and the love he has for all his fans really shows.
After “Wild”, the stage crew brought out three lamps and a couch for the next song, “Postcard”. Gordi, the featured artist on the song, also made an appearance. Before playing “The Good Side”, Sivan told the crowd to get emotional. We did. The heartbreaking breakup ballad was followed by the cheerier, but still touching, “What A Heavenly Way To Die”.
Sivan brought the energy back with his next few songs, “Cool”, “Bite” and his new single, “1999”. He crowd surfed and told the crowd to go “fucking crazy”. After all the jumping and pushing, he made sure to continuously check up on the audience members, handing out water bottles and requesting the crowd to move back so a girl could breathe. He finished up with the love song of the album, “Animal” before coming back for the encore, during which he played “Youth” and “My My My!”.
Most of the audience had been following Sivan on social media since his days as a YouTuber, and the deep emotional connection between him and the crowd was tangible. Being surrounded with people who have grown up with him created a feeling of intimacy unlike any other concert I’ve ever been to. Troye Sivan brought me to tears, and I loved every moment of it.