A 360 review of the sweat tour
Image courtesy: Instagram
In its simplest form, Charli xcx’s summer release Brat is an album. However, coupled with a genius marketing strategy employing both a simplistic yet addictive design (the green background and low-resolution Arial font) and an entire persona, complete with fashion and behavioral guidelines (“Those boots are so brat!”), the album is much more than just a tracklist. It has taken pop culture by storm, transforming the way fans dress, act and perhaps most importantly, the way we go to the club.
As I sit on my bed in my Sweat Tour concert tee, I have to admit that I was late to the Charli train. At its release, I just could not lean into the Brat craze, but thanks to my best friend Addison I thankfully was ultimately engrossed in the party just in time for Troye Sivan and Charli xcx’s collaborative project: The Sweat Tour. In the weeks of August and September, “Girl, so confusing featuring lorde,” “365” and “Guess featuring Billie Eilish” pulsed in my Airpods, begging for a chance to be heard live in a crowd full of like-minded party girls.
October 3 was a fever dream in all the best ways. The concert being on Addison’s 20th birthday, her mom booked us an Airbnb that became home to an elite getting-ready routine. An uber ride later, State Farm Arena was packed to the brim, our eyes skating over the audience in people-watching heaven: black heeled boots, tattered clothes, spray paint, baggy bottoms paired with form-fitting tops and even crowns adorned with real green apples (in homage to the song “Apple”). All of this presented to us in a glorious array of black and Brat green, every individual dressed to their exquisitely unique interpretation of the Brat persona — bold, confident and fearless.
The show opened with Troye Sivan’s “Got Me Started,” the beginning of what launched a mesmerizing performance by both Troye and his dancers. Utilizing props, two large screens and metal scaffolding at the rear of the stage, the artists crafted a set that would highlight the ever-changing dance formations and synchronized movements that evoked magnetic cheers from the crowd.
Image courtesy: Pinterest
Likely the most iconic moment of the concert was the entrance of Charli, the introduction to Brat itself. Three songs into Troye’s first set, the lights dimmed again, revealing a cubicle of green cloth titled “Brat” on all four sides that would eventually drop to reveal the artist herself. The best part? The anticipation. Electronic beats raged in line with strobe lights that quickened in urgency, and when the moment finally came, the sight of Charli xcx (wearing all black, signature sunglasses at the ready) elicited a joyous response that sent us immediately dancing.
The two-hour set flew by in a whirlwind of pure elation. Cameras following Troye and Charli down underground catwalks, an almost blinding array of lights grazing in beat with the music across the crowd, outfit changes and vocals beyond the studio versions all contributed to a perfect sensory concoction that hit in all the right ways. The classic “Vroom Vroom” took me back to high school, and “Spring breakers” had me jumping through the pain in my boots.
Last but certainly not least, a platform at the end of the stage’s catwalk raised Troye and Charli into the air for the show’s iconic finale: “Talk talk,” a track on Brat that Troye features on. The pair’s combined forces made for an excellent ending; Addison and I left staring into space wondering where the time had gone.
The Sweat Tour not only gave us a night to remember, but an experience to cherish for the years ahead in our friendship. Troye Sivan and Charli xcx masterfully created an environment where a community of strangers knew no boundaries, an abundant connection through light and sound.
Strike Out,
Anna Kadet
Editor: Madeline Jankowski
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