For the second of just 2 dates in the UK on the I Should Call Them tour, Dua Saleh bounces on to the stage with a huge smile on their face, and launches into buzzin’.
With signature heavy make up – tonight is a white “mask” across the eyes – Saleh’s electric stage presence is enhanced with a strong visual element, albeit on a sparsely furnished stage at The Pink Room.
Saleh – who many will know from their role in Netflix hit series Sex Education – flows seamlessly between genres and is brilliantly hard to pin down. bo peep blends rap and electronica, while playing games leans more into dance. mOth is Afrobeat-tinged R&B and there’s even a cover of Britney Spears’ classic Toxic.
The eclectic nature of the music is reflected in the inclusive nature of the audience. Saleh – a vocal advocate for gender inclusion – welcomes a wide range of fans with their music. fitt addresses this head on with lyrics like “Non-conforming on my lonesome” detailing just how isolating it can be to exist outside of gender norms. umbrellar deals with mental health struggles, which Saleh is open about on-stage, an ode to resilience in the face of trauma.
Within the audience in The Pink Room, there’s clearly a lot of people identifying strongly with the poetry that Saleh delivers. While they tell the stories that chart the highs and lows of their life, the crowd vibes along to the beats, all the time singing lyrics back, heartfelt and grateful to hear themselves represented.
Alongside this, there’s just the pure joy of being in a space with like-minded people, with a high quality performer in front of us. An extensive US tour shows the appeal they have in their home country, but Saleh is clearly yet to land in a big way in the UK. With 80-90 people in The Pink Room, I feel like we were witness to one of those artists that could blow up in a big way in the next couple of years.
Someone who lyrically represents and taps into the zeitgeist so authentically, and with a sound so current, sits on the edge of something great. Yes, the genre- shifting perhaps pushes them into a niche, but as more artists try to do this, Saleh is well placed to build on this. While there’s rap, R&B, hip-hop, electronic and even some neo-soul, it’s cohesively executed and delivered with style, energy and irresistible personality.
Hopefully next time, they’ll stay a little longer in the UK. There’s every chance Dua Saleh could become a lot of people’s next “favourite flavour”
Set list:
buzzin’
bo peep
chi girl
cat scratch
playing games
fitt
chosen
mOth
Want
Umbrellar
pussy suicide
fav flav
Pretty kitten
Toxic (Britney Spears cover)
Warm Pants
time & time again
Sugar Mama
