Day 11 of Red Bull Sound Select Presents: 30 Days in LA occupied the dimly light room of the The Regent Theater in Downtown Los Angeles. The vintage 1914 cinema did well as a converted performance space. There were two platforms where fans could go to see the show from a higher vantage point.
The night of hip-hop started with POVI, a songstress from Denver with powerful soulful vocals. It was pleasant to hear a live performance that demonstrates raw ability over how strong the production is. Following POVI was Gabriel Garzon Montaño, who also provided an overall slower performance that focused on the singing rather than choreography or strong production. The crowd was very mellow and serene by the time his performance was over. There was a slight break before Tinashe took the stage.
When it was finally time for Tinashe to arrive, she did it in full theatricality. Four dancers dressed in hooded robes slowly crept from the shadows of backstage to do a dance number that looked like something out of “A Midsummer’s Night Dream.” Tinashe came out as the fifth dancer and the audience went wild.
Her opening song was “All Hands on Deck” a fitting song to get everybody in the mood for a night of dancing. She was dressed in boxing shorts and a crop top that revealed her midriff, suiting the choreography she was performing. Her moves were athletic and intense with tons of attitude.
During her performance of “Dollar Signs,” her collaboration with Calvin Harris, confetti filled the room during the instrumental drop. She asked the crowd to jump along and the room complied in excited frenzy. The energy in the room was similar to being at an EDM show.
She then stopped to talk to the crowd about how it was great to be back in her hometown of Los Angeles and thanked the supporters from her mixtape days. As a throwback to fans, she let them know the next song would be “Bet” from her debut album Aquarius. After she performed a few more songs, she stopped again to talk about her upcoming album Joyride. She was really excited for this new project and couldn’t hold in her joy from just speaking about it.
She resumed singing with one of her proclaimed favorites from Aquarius, “How Many Times” to which the crowd cheered. She immediately went into playing Nick Jonas’ “Jealous” over the speakers and sang her remix. During her choreography of “Jealous”, she instantly snapped to transition into “Drop That Kitty.”
One of the highlights of the night was a special surprise. She told the audience that everybody probably knew this song, and after a slight suspenseful minute, she revealed the cover to be “Lean On” by Major Lazer and DJ Snake featuring MØ. Being one of the biggest songs of 2015, the entire room danced along to her rendition. Confetti spewed out again during the instrumental portion of the song.
She ended her set with “Watch Me Work” and then left the stage. She returned in traditional fashion for an encore, bringing out a guitarist to do an acoustic version of her new single “Player.” She admitted this was the first time she performed the acoustic version live but wanted to do it specifically for Los Angeles.
Her final song of the night was the popular “2 ON” that drove everybody in the room to dance along. Her delivery of crisp choreography and sultry vocals enthralled the entire audience and there was no doubt from anybody in the room with how talented Tinashe is.
Tinashe Set List
All Hands on Deck
Pretend
Pretend (Remix)
Dolla Signs
Bet On It
Cold Sweat
The Far Side Of The Moon
How Many Times
Jealous
Drop That Kitty
Lean On (Cover)
Party Favors
Watch Me Work
Player (Acoustic)
2 On