NATALIE JANE - BOSTON, MA 3.16.24
Coverage by JULIA FINOCCHIARO
Concertgoers may have been a little confused when they looked at their tickets to see a 5pm door time for Natalie Jane’s sold-out show at Brighton Music Hall in Boston this past weekend, but the early start time didn’t deter the infectious enthusiasm felt amongst the crowd. In fact, the dedicated fans who had been waiting for hours outside probably were excited to get to their spot on the barricade a couple hours earlier than usual.
The night opened up with a wonderful set by singer-songwriter Jessica Baio. While Baio mentioned to the crowd early on that she wasn’t feeling 100%, she was able to power through and perform a phenomenal set (if she hadn’t said anything, I would’ve been none the wiser). Interacting with the crowd and moving around the stage, Baio got the crowd warmed up with around 30 minutes of her original songs that definitely matched the vibes of Natalie Jane’s songs that would be performed later on.
During the changeover between sets, you could feel fans become more and more anxious for Natalie Jane to take the stage. The younger crowd, many of which likely discovered Jane from her very successful TikTok and online presence, was visibly excited, some even attending with their parents - showing them their love for Jane’s music and online personality. I admired the dedication that many of these parents and older siblings had to making sure fans of all ages had a great time, even if that meant waiting for a few hours outside before the show!
Around 7pm the lights went down and Natalie Jane took the stage amidst cheering and outbursts of admiration for the singer. She opened up with “Mentally Cheating” off her debut album Where Am I? and followed this up with “I’m Good,” her collab with charlieonnafriday. She then slowed it down for a powerful and emotional performance of “If You Died Today.”
Since Jane’s discography is on the smaller side as she’s starting out, she made sure to throw in some covers into her set. “Crazy” by Gnarls Barkley and “Mount Everest” by Labrinth were her songs of choice, and both she and the audience seemed to have an incredible time singing them. I hadn’t heard much of Jane’s music before this show, but what stood out to me the most throughout the show was just how powerful her voice is.
For the rest of the set, Jane performed the majority of her debut album along with some singles. Towards the end of the set, Natalie performed “Seven” (her “favorite song to perform,” according to a TikTok uploaded to her account of the performance at the Boston show). She of course closed with “AVA” before thanking the audience and ending the show for the night.
This is Natalie Jane’s first headline tour, and she continues across the US with shows in the midwest and on the west coast before launching into a European tour later this Spring.
