Jai Paul’s London Performance And The Ballot That Proved British Fans Are The Best Around
When it was announced a few weeks ago that there would be a ballot for Jai Paul’s first live performance in London, I was a little more than worried. As most of you already know, I’ve been a major fan since 2012 and missing this was simply out of the question. So when May 4th finally came around and I received no ticket alert on my phone, I was naturally upset. I stewed in anguish for a few minutes before clarity hit me like the metaphysical force itself — why not ask a fan for help? I mean, when has a Jai fan ever refused another? I scoured Twitter and Reddit like a dimension-slipping maniac but came up short every time… that’s until a niggling thought crossed my mind. Years ago, in my darkest hours of coursework-avoiding procrastination, there would always be a website that managed to alleviate my anxiety — Kanye To The. The Jai fandom began with it and perhaps it would save me in my hour of need? I quickly typed in the web address and realised the immortal thread hadn’t been used in years, but a simple google search revealed that KTT refugees had formed a new site — KTT2 (not particularly original but succinct enough). l signed up for an account on that site and within minutes of locating the new Jai Paul thread, I managed to obtain a ticket code from a fan who couldn’t make it. In his own words, he stated that,
May 9th finally came around and I arrived at the venue shortly after 7pm. The queue was long. As I stood in line, preconceptions about the fandom slowly started to melt away. I found that Jai fans came in all different shapes and sizes. I saw a few teens, men and women in their 20s, some in their 30s and 40s. Jai’s music had resonated with a wide range of people and this realisation made me appreciate him even more. I spoke to a jovial fan and her equally excited partner while waiting outside. She was a Londoner originally from Belfast who used to work in the fashion industry. Smiling from ear to ear, she expressed how long she’s been waiting for this. Her partner shared similar sentiments. We all talked about music and even had an interesting back and forth about the birth of the hip hop genre which was not only enlightening, but rather relevant considering Jai himself was heavily inspired by hip hop pioneer, J Dilla.
The inside of the venue was beautiful. The Outernet is a new entertainment district in Charing Cross that opened in 2022 and you can tell. Line array speakers were clearly visible, the floors were immaculate, bathrooms were clean and there was a nice modern bar at the back of the auditorium making for easy access.
The concert started around 8:20 pm with Paul Institute alum, Fabiana Palladino, as the opening act. She showcased her eclectic taste in music with a wide array of catchy songs including the highly acclaimed Shimmer, which had people nodding along and bobbing side to side. She seemed self-assured and at ease, more so than her performance alongside Jai at Coachella only a month before. It’s wonderful to see an artist grow so quickly before your eyes and I’m sure she was incredibly proud of herself. Once her set came to an end, she received a rapturous round of applause before heading backstage.
Now it was time for the main course and as you can expect the anticipation was high. There was a lot of chatter, a lot of whispering, a lot of excitement. Occasionally, a wave of cheers would radiate from the audience as the stage was being set up.
Roughly 20 minutes after his expected time, Jai finally appeared like a long awaited prophet ready to claim his throne. The atmosphere was electric. There were faces that could only be described as pure ecstasy. The set was mostly similar to Coachella’s with all the classic songs we know and love such as He, 100,000, BTSTU,and All Night, but to see it live was a treat. Zion Wolf in particular was amazing and seeing fans react to it was equally incredible. A gentleman in front of me stamped the ground repeatedly and banged the railing as the dark reggae beat sensually permeated the auditorium.
Last month, After Jai’s performance at Coachella, hip hop legend Questlove voiced his surprise at what he perceived to be Jai’s lacklustre performance. His remarks were met with contention from fans, but a few older heads agreed with what he was saying. However, something tells me that if he was in London last Tuesday, he would have been more than impressed with Jai. Compared to Coachella, Jai wasn’t as stiff and looked comfortable on stage like he had been doing it for a while. His voice was pitch perfect and that elegant falsetto that we all know and love was flawless.
Halfway through the set, Jai hit us with a little unexpected surprise:
https://youtube.com/shorts/senf3S0LOg0?feature=share
It was a cover of Cars by Gary Numan, who similar to Jai, is heralded as an electronic music pioneer. It was practically similar to the original song and Jai even pulled out a tambourine… seriously.
As expected, the last song of the night was Str8 Outta Mumbai. Now this is what I had been waiting for. My trainers were tied securely around my feet and I was ready to go. As soon as the drum-laced intro kicked in, exclamations of joy flooded the entire place and every single one of us was jumping. Jai was visibly enthused and you could see a big fat smile plastered across his face. This song really encapsulates what Jai has been representing from the very beginning… originality over everything. Once the song came to an end, Jai graciously thanked us all for the love before heading backstage. There were screams of “Encore!” but alas, it wasn’t to be. The concert was a huge success and one that will most likely go down as one of the greats.
The following night, I returned back to the KTT2 thread where I saw a fellow fan debating on whether or not to go. After my experience, I said this:
The next day he replied back:
A fitting end to a story that literally began on the internet.
