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Writer's pictureLuis James

LIVE: Lil Tjay @ The O2 Arena, London

What a night at the O2.


Ever since Lil Tjay announced he would be hosting a 5 year anniversary show at the O2 in London, you knew it was going to be a special night. On Saturday 12th October, the New York City rapper packed out The O2 in London, selling out 20,000 tickets. This was a massive jump from his usual 4,000 venues, when he has been to the UK prior. He stepped up to the plate and gave fans their hard earned moneys worth, everything about this show was a level up. From guests, to outfits, to stage production, the promotion and back up dancers, congratulations to his team for putting it all together. 


Lil Tjay

The list of supporting acts and special guests was stacked. We will get into the special guests further into the article but one support act that stole the show was Yeabsra (YJ). An upcoming rapper from London who has gone viral recently for his new track 'No Diddy'. He was actually brought out during Fivio Foreign’s set before the main event. His one track actually had the best crowd reacting out of all the support acts, so much so that Fivio even decided to keep him on stage to perform his hit ‘Big Drip’ with him for the London crowd. 


Despite fans expecting Key Glock to be one of the supports acts as he was the name on the flyer, I think fans were pleasantly surprised to find out it would be Fivio Foreign. He let his culture and roots be known to the crowd as he came out to ‘City of Gods’ which is a popular hit with Kanye West and Alicia Keys. He warmed up the crowd perfectly for his fellow New York artist Lil Tjay. I would have said that this was the best decision, due to Fivio having a better musical chemistry with Tjay, than Key Glock. Plus the duo have the more records together, it made sense to keep the New York culture flowing from start to finish.


Lil Tjay

Minutes before hopping out on stage, fans got to enjoy a montage of clips from throughout his career and of course the infamous moment where he was hospitalized from being shot multiple times a few years ago. The video suddenly cuts and we see the star emerge from underneath the stage, with fireworks and fire machines pouring out as he performed ‘Laneswitch’ from his Past 2 Present album. The first quarter of the show was filled with a mixture of tracks from down the years 'Zoo York' and 'Resume' got the best crowd reactions from the first section.


A quick outfit change for the Bronx rapper and he was back into the next section of the show and this was the part that changed the vibe for the whole night. He introduced his first guest Polo G to perform their popular single ‘Pop Out’ and it had to be the standout moment of the night. They have barely performed this single together, so to have them bless the stage with it in the UK, was a special moment. Not only did we get to see the iconic duo but they also brought back out Fivio Foreign to perform ‘Headshot’, for the first time ever. If you didn’t think the crowds energy could have raised anymore, having the trio perform sent the O2 electric. What a moment this was.


With any headline arena show, of course you can expect a lot of outfit changes. The rapper had 3 in total, showcasing his New York fashion influence to the UK crowd. He first came out in a all white KidSuper jacket, red sunglasses and diamond encrusted jeans with some white boots. He then went onto a more relaxed outfit, rocking a plain white tee with the yellow dungarees, followed up by a black leather co-ord to finish the show in style.


We even got to hear an unreleased track with Tjay and UK rapper Young Adz which we can expect to hear on his next album. This was the perfect moment to showcase this worldwide collaborating in Adz hometown and of course he was greeted with a roaring reaction as he came out for his verse on the track. If you have been to any of Lil Tjay's shows you will know he always pays homage to his friend Pop Smoke, who was sadly taken away from us just over 4 years ago. The two New York rappers had several hits together with their biggest success coming from 'Mood Swings' which is definitely a fan favourite. The London crowd was rocking with this track, as they sang word for word, honouring the late Pop Smoke.


Lil Tjay

If you managed to get a ticket for the show, you wouldn’t have been disappointed in the different amount of acts you got to see perform. The first special guest was the best one of the night, Polo G popped out all the way from Chicago to show love. It was a moment to see Lil Tjay and Polo G share the stage together for their hit single ‘Pop Out’ l, Polo even stuck around after to give us two solo track performances as well. Before leaving the stage, Fivio Foreign joined the duo to perform ‘Headshot’. 


With the rapper being back in the UK, it was only right to bring out some London stars. Firstly, we got to see an appearance from Tion Wayne, as he performed  few hit singles and kept the energy within the crowd. The second UK artist to come out had one do the moments of the night for me. The DJ announced that Tjay would be performing an unreleased track to get the crowds reaction and see if they was feeling it. We got to hear the hook from the rapper before fans noticed the next artist on the track was DBE member, Young Adz. A section of Adz’s verse was playing but no sign of anyone other than Tjay on the stage. Swiftly after, Young Adz came out to a massive cheer from the crowd and performed his verse on this unreleased collaboration. Moments like this are unmatched for not only the crowd but it offers a valuable insight for the artists to see how well the track will perform. For me I’ve always been a big fan of US and UK collaborations, whether you like them or not, you can’t argue that it offers something different to the scene. Coming from the UK but enjoying US music so much, it so always good for me to see the gap being bridged as well.


The final surprise guest came from an artist who has one of the hottest songs in the world out right now. As soon as the backing track emerged from the speakers, the crowd reaction was enough to tell you they knew exactly who was coming out next. Jordan Adetunji came out with all the energy for the London crowd to perform ‘Kehlani’. A few months on and it’s crazy to see the electric reaction that song still gets, judging from the crowds reaction, I think it’s safe to say Jordan will be exploring options for a tour in the UK soon.


Lil Tjay

This was easily the best show I have been to this year and arguably the best show I have attended in some years. The come up from Tjay has been a journey and to see what he did in Birmingham a few years ago, to selling out the O2 is an achievement. Having been to both of his most recent UK shows, the level up of this show was insane. It just solidifies why Lil Tjay is one of the hottest artists right now and how his ceiling has no limits. With him being such a young artist, there is still a lot of potential for him to show and different sounds for him to explore. Judging off this show alone, it’s clear to see he will become one of the biggest stars in the rap game. 


Lil Tjay

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