Love him or hate him, there’s no one quite like Lil Uzi Vert. A sold-out crowd awaited the Philadelphian rapper at the Forum, and in return, they saw a performance that left the devoted happy, but most others divided.
With no support act to speak of besides DJ recent-American-“hits” (seriously, stop playing ‘XXXtentacion’) it’s hard to not feel like this show was a little bit lacklustre compared to overseas performances. In what would’ve been a perfect opportunity to introduce more people to Australian artists (just saying, Sydney rapper Manu Crook$ would’ve been a perfect opener), instead, we heard more Kendrick Lamar played over the PA (not that that’s ever a bad thing). Despite this, the crowd was hyped up, which is a testament to Uzi’s reputation.
In some ways, a Lil Uzi Vert show is unpredictable; in other ways, it’s tightly scripted. Making full use of the Forum’s screen, the aesthetic aspects of his show were almost as enjoyable as the high energy that he exudes. The rapper appeared unable to contain his excitement on stage, which made for a captivating live show.
Unfortunately, this was a night that was marred by its all too short nature. Starting a little bit after 9:30, with Uzi shuffling off by 10:20, the short set left the crowd bemused. Uzi played smash hit ‘XO Tour Llif3’ twice, and played his bigger hits, but when you compare his performance to setlists performed overseas, the crowd couldn’t help but feel a bit short-changed. Whether this was exclusive to Melbourne I’m not sure, but it’s not hard to feel annoyed as a consumer when ticket prices were as high as they were.
The crowd was filled with diehard fans, which meant that the singalongs were omnipresent. Mosh pits were everywhere, even towards the back of the sizeable venue, which isn’t something that this reviewer has seen before. However, as the lights went up, and everyone shuffled out, as bemused as they were, there was a lingering sense of annoyance. For an all-too-brief moment, Lil Uzi Vert had appeared before our eyes and then vanished. Hopefully, next time he visits us for a more substantial dive into his already formidable discography.
Highlight: The crowd atmosphere.
Lowlight: The disappearing act. Seriously, where’s the goodbye?
Crowd Favourite: ‘XO Tour Llif3’.
