Fatai - Live at The Lexington, London 13.09.18
Not long after I got back from Sweden - like a couple hours or so - I was asked by Tommy, Fatai’s man with a plan for her European-based stuff, to cover her gig at The Lexington later that week. I’d listened to a few tracks before I got to the venue, but didn’t really know much about Fatai herself.
It turns out that this was her first UK tour, and people were incredibly hyped by it all, which was awesome to see how passionate they were about Fatai’s music and supporting her journey, especially as she’s from half a world away, and had come straight from her gig at Amsterdam the night before.
I’m not gonna sit and write a breakdown of her setlist and music, because I’m no Anthony Fantano - but the vibe of the night was pretty powerful, the audience hung on her every word, and were incredibly accommodating to my bobbing and weaving through them to get the shot. Fatai even stopped the intro of a song to check if I was doing alright at one point, whilst I was chilling on the side of the stage, she gave me a quick thank you and cheer from the crowd, that was pretty sweet in every definition of the word.
Then there was another thank you during her summary of her first UK gig experience - it made me realise how truly humble and gracious Fatai was for everything that she was experiencing in her career due to her incredible talents and the support of her fans the whole world over. It was pretty inspiring.
Shout out to Fatai and Tommy for getting me involved with the gig, and Pete who I chatted to a lot post-gig. Hopefully, I’ll catch you all again on the next tour.