Singer songwriter Katy B performs at the O2 Academy in Birmingham (Photograph: Mark Lloyd)
A complete rarity in the world of dance music – a singer who can actually sing! Katy B kicked off her Little Red Tour, at Birmingham’s O2 Academy, to a sold out crowd.
Opening the proceedings was local Birmingham lass Becky Hill who reached the semi final stage on BBC One’s talent show The Voice.
Birmingham-based singer who appeared on The Voice, Becky Hill, supports Katy B (Photograph: Mark Lloyd)
At only 20-years-old, she has a voice that possesses so much depth and beauty, you forget how young she is. Opening with new single Caution to the Wind, the crowd was instantly in awe of her music, as the lyrics of her songs are so easy to identify with . Unfortunately, there were a few technical issues where Becky’s inner ear stopped working during the first song, but she handled it professionally and was soon back on form.
She engaged with the crowd and exchanged banter about the local areas, before revealing her family and friends were in attendance. Becky clearly loves being on stage and she oozes a fantastic energy that’s contagious. A fantastic opening act and a great choice!
Touring with her new album Little Red, the singer continues until late October (Photograph: Mark Lloyd)
Slowing the evening down slightly with a stunning acoustic version of Everything and the exquisite Crying for No Reason left me with goosebumps. The pace soon picked up again with Aaliya and the genius of On a Mission that propelled Katy into the limelight.
Mercury Prize nominated Katy B performs once again in Birmingham (Photograph: Mark Lloyd)
And so we came to the end of a near hour-and-a-half set where the majority of the crowd were no doubt regretting their seasonal jumpers in the sauna-like O2 Academy Birmingham. I am in no doubt that both vocalists are two of the best around and therefore have incredibly bright futures ahead of them.
I really wouldn’t be surprised if even bigger venues aren’t too far away!
Jo Lloyd
