Around 6 years since his last solo performance in the UK, J Balvin returned to London for the last show of his “Que Bueno Volver a Verte” (How Good to See You Again) world tour. In this timeframe has become one of the main contributors to the global success of Reggaeton, being the first Latino man to headline some of the world biggest festivals and joining us fresh from his main stage performance at Coachella featuring special guest Will Smith. Despite J Balvin being one of the best-selling Latino artists, the London leg of his tour experienced slow ticket sales - flogging prices by 50% in the final two weeks running up to the show. To the relief of his team a near 20,000 people showed up on the night to fill the capacity of the O2 arena and experience the grammy-winning artist live.
Opening for him was London home-grown talent and British Latina Artist, Sophie Castillo. Her performance carried an ethereal, romantic energy paired with soft, beautifully controlled vocals and catchy melodies - a sonic fusion she calls Indie-Latino music featured on her latest EP ‘Venus’. She was followed by an old-school Reggaeton set from DJ Khris, who entertained a lively crowd with familiar Y2K favourites in anticipation for the Balvin’s arrival.
The momentum of his entrance was interrupted by some technical difficulties. Members of the audience looked to each other in confusion, left in the dark as the opening interlude video abruptly lost its audio followed by its images. It was only a short while before the issue was fixed and the crowd was re-introduced to the show – giving the Colombian star an even bigger welcome the second time around.
The beginning of the night was themed around an area-51-style, intergalactic aesthetic. The staging centred a tall sleek rectangular structure projecting warnings of an UFO landing in the area with a single mission: to party… hard. A horizontal separation in the structure created an elevated stage space from which J Balvin emerged to a roaring audience and the booming beat of his most streamed song ‘Mi Gente’.
The concert began with a revision of his most upbeat hits like ‘Dientes’, ‘Loco Contigo’, ‘Reggaeton’ and ‘Con Altura’. The matching visuals were reminiscent of what you would find at an electronic music festival - campy yet eerie images of dancers and extraterrestrial monsters pulsating to the beat. His creative team delivered in making this tour an immersive sci-fi experience, a refreshing and fun theme for the genre of Reggaeton that further came to life through its choreography and costuming.
Balvin’s wardrobe combined his fashion-forward taste with space age elements. He was dressed in a black sequined moto jacket with exaggerated square shoulders, stylish baggy-fitted jeans and spiked sunglasses. Eight dancers joined him on stage; their outfits carried the same theme with certain elements being an extension of the singer’s - flared silver dresses with large shoulder pads, moon boots and similarly large mysterious sunglasses, reflective and bug-eyed in design. Like the commander of an alien army, he effortlessly slipped in and out of choreography among his dancers, engaging the crowd with the charm and charisma of a natural performer.
The next section of the show was humble in its production. The singer slowed down the pace with his more mellow hits like ‘La Cancion’ and ‘Ahora Dice’, singing against the background of a moving galaxy on a smoke-filled, hazy stage. Towards the latter half of the night J Balvin, his DJ and his MC performed a fast medley of a few songs from his three latest albums - ‘Jose’, ‘Oasis’ and ‘Colores’. In contrast with the first half of the performance, this was J Balvin stripped-back, carried solely by the energy and admiration of the audience – no background dancers, special effects or gimmicks. He continued to enjoy an intimate segment with his crowd, inviting a family of four to jump around on stage with him.
Overall, the concert was a night of show-stopping, over the top production mixed with the perfect ratio of laid-back and heart-warming moments from the artist. J Balvin at this height of his career continues to set the standard for creativity, authenticity and stage presence in the Reggaeton space.
