“We must always remind ourselves of the power we hold as people” that’s the message Lola Young has given to us on the second night of her UK Tour her at Manchester’s O2 Apollo.
Support comes from indie folk artist Annabelle Dinda, who’s songs are lyrically poetry. Their songwriting is fuelled by the frustrating double standards women are expected to navigate through in society. She confronts the portrayal of women as ‘loud’ and men as ‘pioneers’ in ‘The Hand’ a song that captured people online before it was ever released. The impact of the song online is translated into the crowd, the heaviness of the guitars and drums from the live band adds a whole new layer to the lyrics and really embodies that underlying theme of frustration and angst.
We’re in a 3,000+ cap room, but in those final few minutes before Lola takes to the stage it feels like we’re in an arena. The chanting and cheering is atmospheric, it feels like we’re about to greet an old friend.
Lola’s set starts with ‘SAD SOB STORY! :)’, a song about moving on and refusing to dwell, which I think sets the tone for this night well, we should not be here to play the comparison game or dwell on her past.
The standout moment of the gig is the ‘Manchester Mantra’ — a message that Lola wants to tailor for each city. Tonight’s mantra is powerful, drawing in on the importance of hope, self-love, and grounding yourself.
‘Sometimes you forget your own power, it is easy to do. When the noise around you becomes too loud, your instinct is to shout above it so you still feel heard.
You are the only person in this world who can keep your purpose alive, so cherish it, share it if you can, and feed it so it can continue to grow’
For the encore, Lola gets closer to the crowd, taking the stage steps for her new song ‘From Down Here’. This is her first release since her LP ‘I’m Only F**cking Myself’ this song is a self-reflection on the battle of feeling joy, pain, and longing when you’re trying to heal and move on. Lola Young’s songwriting is always emotive and personal, but there’s something about the raw vulnerability in this song that draws you in.
The night draws to a close with ‘Messy’ and the crowd erupts for the final time, it’s a song as with the rest of the set list that feels so emotive and powerful in a way that you can’t help but chant every word out.
The message of self-love and growth has rang true to this crowd tonight, there are people chanting the mantra as we leave the venue. This marks a bright new chapter for Lola Young as the UK tour continues through June, hitting Birmingham, Glasgow and London before hitting the states in September for ‘All Things Go’ Festival in NYC.
