Irish music sensation Niall Horan has finally started his long awaited The Show world tour. Six years since he last took to the stage in Belfast, the crowds were evidently glad to have him back.
The former One Direction member had to cancel his last tour due to the Covid-19 pandemic, so fans have been eagerly waiting for a chance to see him perform all across the world. It’s fair to say that the wait was worth it as The Show Live on Tour will be a night nobody will forget.
Immediately kicking off the night with his hit song Nice To Meet Ya, the concert was a guaranteed success. The crowds roared to the upbeat, familiar sound. As a well known Niall Horan song, it was sure to get everyone singing along. The song, which was perfectly crafted to be catchy and upbeat, was an electric start to the night.
Moving straight into one of his newer tracks, On A Night Like Tonight, was a wonderful way to showcase what he wanted the evening to look like. Horan sang the song with passion in his voice, getting the crowds to sing parts to him.
Chatting to the audience, Horan informed them of his one rule for the night “to leave with a smile on your face”, and he made sure to put on a show that would have everyone doing just that.
Horan made sure to not ignore the older songs of his discography by playing hits like Since We’re Alone, Flicker and his very first solo release, This Town. All of these slower paced, heartfelt songs gave the audience a moment to appreciate the depth of Horan’s talent. The vast breadth of his artist abilities, by being able to emotionally move an arena of 11,000 people just by standing on stage playing his guitar.
The whole concert was filled with several stand out moments, one of which was when the crowd came together and put all of their flashlights on their phones during the gorgeous, lullaby sounding, You Could Start A Cult, taken from his most recent album. This whole song was a moment to be remembered with Horan even playing the harmonica during the instrumental section.
One major thing that was constant throughout the whole night was Horan’s amazing stage presence. The dancing, jokes, fan interactions and constant thanks, truly showed the audience just how happy he was to be back on the stage.
The stage set up itself was in a different league to any other tour from Horan. Set up to feel like a theatre, with a theatre curtain and a headline banner that displays his initials and the city he’s in, it’s clear he took the title ‘The Show’ literally.
Getting back into his quicker paced, upbeat songs, Horan performed a crowd favourite, Everywhere taken from his second album that he never got to tour. The multi coloured lights took over the arena as the crowds went wild.
It would have been easy for Horan to ignore his One Direction background since he had so many songs that had never been performed live, but that wasn’t the case for him. Making sure to recognise his One Direction roots, he played a huge One Direction hit, Night Changes. It was during this iconic number that the stage in fact changed itself and turned into a disco party, with a disco ball hanging from the roof illuminating the crowds with a sparkle. Everybody in the arena were up on their feets, singing along, getting transported back to the One Direction days.
Making sure to give credit to his amazingly talented backup band, Horan took the time to individually introduce each one to the crowd, getting them to play a small piece of their instrument. Throughout the whole night the band never faltered and stayed on top form, all showing the same enthusiasm and happiness to be back on the stage as Horan did.
To end the show Horan performed two of his biggest hits, Save My Life, which he dedicates to his ever so loyal fanbase, and the incredibly popular, highly lively, Slow Hands.
To mark the end of the concert, instead of confetti, Horan opted to keep in line with his theme of a theatre feel and had the gorgeous curtain drop with a projection on it that read “The End”.
By the time the lights came on it was obvious that Horan had successfully completed his one request for everyone to leave smiling, because The Show Live On Tour, was quite literally an extremely enjoyable and incredible opening show.
This was just night one of his world tour so it’s safe to say that it will only getter bigger and better for Niall Horan.
Just saw The Show in Tampa last night. Amazing! Love the music, Niall’s accent & humor, how humble he seems, and how he’s wearing his hair more natural now. Great how he interacts with the audience, but he left out one demographic: mine. I’m a retired hospice nurse, 67 y/o, & have 17 grands. And no, I didn’t go there to bring one of them—I came solo so I could really enjoy Niall & The Show. I hope he does another season of the Voice after his tour.