Breakout alt-pop princess Nessa Barrett brought her highly anticipated ‘Aftercare’ tour to Phoenix, Arizona with the incredible Ari Abdul for a night of dancing, screaming, and unforgettable fun.
Ari Abdul
Singer-songwriter Ari Abdul was the perfect opener for this show. She has the sort of powerful, liberating sex appeal Barrett goes for, but in a bit of a different way. Dressed in baggy jorts, an oversized button up, and a tie, the crowd was eating her up. Accompanied only by her guitar player Constance Antoinette, the pair brought an electric, vibrant energy to the venue.
Abdul has a stage presence that some performs try to emulate but can’t. She works the crowd so subtly and you cannot help but keep your eyes on her. Instead of simply singing and running around on stage, she plays to the audience, gauging their reactions and building her performance around what they want. There is a sort of female-gaze centric sex appeal to her that she owns. And Antoinette not only plays along, but emphasizes it. As they perform with one another, there is a chemistry that the crowd adored.
Abdul woke the crowd up and got their heart racing, the perfect open for Barrett.
Nessa Barrett
The woman of the hour took the stage not a moment too soon. The screaming crowd was getting antsy, yelling her name and begging her to come out. Once the lights dimmed, the anticipation boiled over and the crowd lost their mind. Adorned in the cutest black babydoll dress, Barrett appeared like a goddess. Even standing still, bathed in a single spotlight, she looked ethereal – an image she has carefully curated but very naturally embodies.
While majority of the setlist came from her latest release Aftercare, she still indulged the crowd in a few old fan favorites including ‘gaslight’ and ‘scare myself’. She lets the music speak for itself, maintaining a relatively delicate stage presence that feels sensually in tune with her music. It almost feels like being in a trance, watching her look out into the crowd as if she is personally looking directly at everyone, until the music takes over and she moves her body purposefully and powerfully.
With Barrett’s rise to fame from TikTok, there can be a skepticism from a performance aspect. Songs can sound great but if you can’t perform, those great songs can fall short. But Barrett defies that, putting on an enchanting show that is soft and exciting. She balances a delicate femininity with a powerful liberation, singing about heartbreak and sex and the unsexiness of fame – all while the crowd watches in a trance.
Barrett is a powerhouse performer and puts on an incredible show, daring you to desire her and forcing you to feel like the hottest, sexiest version of yourself.
