There is no better way to spend a Monday night than to interview and watch who we believe to be one of the most exciting, up and coming English solo artists this year, perform. 25-year-old Jess Glynne’s voice is unique and soulful, and left us wanting more.
The venue was rather small but packed with a great atmosphere. There was a wide blend of ages, ranging from mostly teenagers and young adults, to a more mature audience, which made for a nice mix of people. As it was Jess’ Birthday it was clear that many of her friends and family had come along for support, even ‘Happy Birthday’ was sung to her and gave the event a more intimate feeling.
Jess Glynne’s [8/10] performance was simple and incredibly effective. The lighting did not distract from her voice but added to the entertainment, along with her live band and backing singers who’s dancing and enthusiasm helped encourage the audience to do the same. She started off with some of her original songs, which she describes as soul and R’n’B. She also, of course, performed her most popular hits: ‘Rather Be’ with Clean Bandit, ‘My Love’ with Route 94 and her own single ‘Right Here’. These were the most popular amongst the audience, and the ambience became distinctively more vibrant with people dancing along. She was clearly overwhelmed by the level of support from the crowd and became quite emotional during one of her slower songs, which showed her passion and drew us closer to her as a performer.
Jess writes most of her own songs and despite never having heard them before, we enjoyed listening to every single one of them, possibly more than the more well-known collaborations, and look forward to the release of her album! We were both pleasantly surprised at the power of her voice which is possibly revealed more in her own work rather than in her singles with other artists, as her own songs have more of a soulful sound. Her most recent single with Clean Bandit ‘Real Love’ was the perfect way to end off the evening as it has just been released and we were able to recognise it.
We feel that it would be fair to say that this gig exceeded our expectations in that we enjoyed every single song, which is not often the case when listening to new music. Her set varied from pop and dance songs to more soulful and emotional ones. There wasn’t a moment where we were bored; in fact we didn’t want it to end! We even left with a bit of a girl crush on Jess, especially as we got to meet and interview her. She was humble both on and off stage.
We would definitely recommend anyone to go and see her or check her music out – we are certainly looking forward to see what the future holds for Jess Glynne!
