On Tuesday, October 14, Lorde played at Red Rocks Amphitheater. Lorde is known for her intimate and expressive lyrics that feel like hearing a secret from an old friend. How will she express this intimacy to an audience of over 9,525 people?
Lorde began the show with “Royals,” instantly engaging the entire audience. Attendees focused on her vibrant stage presence, curious about the tricks she might share next. As the set progressed, Lorde moved and danced with ease, accompanied only by two backup dancers, and was followed by a camera capturing close-up footage that highlighted her expressive performance.
Throughout the show, Lorde was loose and free with her body, dancing in a way that perfectly expressed the deep aspects of her lyrics. The show felt personal, like dancing in the dull light of your best friend’s house, comforting and cherished.
While sitting alone on the stage, Lorde confided in the audience that playing at Red Rocks had been a long-time goal of hers. When she was 16, her manager brought her to see the venue, planting a seed of intention to return as a performing artist someday. Since that initial visit years ago, Lorde discussed the hardships and life-changing events that took place, as well as the personal growth experienced between then and the present.
Lorde’s pure ability to captivate the audience by purely being herself was absolutely inspiring to every young person there. Lorde recalls in an interview with Rolling Stone that she has struggled with her gender and allowing herself to make peace with her own body: “On Virgin‘s opening track, she lays the tale of her rebirth bare—’Some days I’m a woman/Some days I’m a man.’ I know that’s not a very satisfying answer, but there’s a part of me that is really resistant to boxing it up.” Lorde still calls herself a cis woman and her pronouns remain unchanged. She describes herself as “in the middle gender-wise.”
Ultimately, the artist’s recent metamorphosis is what made the concert so intimate. The message of allowing yourself to be undeniably who you are rang volumes through RedRocks. For a few hours, the whole world was reduced to the open night sky, best friends, and transcendent music.
Photo Courtesy of social media
