Being in Manila “feels so good”, Jacob Collier told the audience at his November 23 concert in Alabang’s Filinvest Tent. As part of his Djesse World Tour, the Grammy-award-winning artist was in the Philippines for the first time, thanks to Karpos Live. Here’s a recap of what went down.
A bare-footed genius
Two hours after the venue gates opened, he started his set at around 8:30 p.m. Even though there wasn’t an opening act, the crowd was hyped. And though many of us had an inkling of what he had in store, he instantly blew us away with his infectious energy.
Sans shoes, Collier kicked off the concert with back-to-back performances of “With the Love in My Heart” and “Count the People“, maximalist numbers that shatter the rules of music, bending genres as well as mixing time and key signatures.
It was the perfect way to start the night. For the folks in the audience who were new to his music, it was a great introduction to the sheer breadth of what he’s capable of. (After all, only an artist who has mastered his craft can break the rules as Collier does.) For fans who’d already done deep dives into his discography, this was an exhilarating I-can’t-believe-this-is-finally-happening moment: to witness Collier in his element, jumping from one instrument to another before launching into a ridiculously wild (often nonsensical) rap.
Bringing out the feels
Collier has been lauded for being a musician’s musician, but his music isn’t inaccessible — he knows how to connect to an audience. Case in point: When he wasn’t blowing our minds with his genre-bending and multi-instrumental ~*skillz*~, he was shattering our feels.
During “The Sun Is in Your Eyes” he took a more vulnerable approach, performing the song solo with just his guitar. And for the heart-wrenching “Never Gonna Be Alone” (originally recorded with Lizzy McAlpine and John Mayer) he and his accompanying vocalist Alita Moses made more than a few audience members misty-eyed.
The audience choir
A Jacob Collier concert is an interactive experience — one where he often turns the audience into one of his many instruments. He did this multiple times during the show, running from one end of the stage to another as he conducted and “tuned” the audience to create the harmonies he was looking for. The experience was breathtaking — figuratively and literally (because nakakahingal siya, ok).
The crowd was singing along to Collier from start to finish, but they really turned things up when he launched into his hits “Time Alone with You” and “All I Need“.
Collier also shared that he plays one song exclusively for each show on his world tour (Manila was his 78th). Manila was lucky enough to get a performance of Daniel Caesar’s “Best Part“, and it was a trip to hear the audience scream from the very first line: “You don’t know, babe…”
Good vibes, high energy
Collier wrapped up the night with a performance of the crowd-pleaser “Sleeping on My Dreams“. After the crowd’s clamoring for more, he returned for an encore performance of Queen’s “Somebody to Love“, where he turned the audience into a choir for the final time that night.
The show wasn’t just beautiful sonically, but also visually. Throughout the concert, the lighting complemented each song masterfully. Timed to the beat, lights blasted kaleidoscopic color during the frenzy of the first songs and, during the slower numbers, brought the drama with spotlights.
We also couldn’t help but note that in contrast to many performers who tend to gloss over the contributions of their technical team, Collier took the time to thank each member of his team individually — and not just the band. (Fun fact: his sound engineer Regina Averion is a Filipina!) We stan an appreciative king.
Jacob Collier’s Manila concert was a fun, frenetic, and beautiful journey that had the audience questioning everything they knew about music, but in the best way possible. We can’t wait to see what his upcoming album Djesse Vol. 4 has in store.
