Eventim Apollo, Hammersmith
On this balmy spring night, Hammersmith's Apollo radiated with those basking, ready to verge into this cauldron's comforting intimacy stirred by the soulful R&B singer, Ari Lennox.
Emitted from the speakers, Lennox’s mother suddenly bestowed upon us “you’re destined for greatness”, reciprocated with a collective scream as the Fugees-esque track ‘POF’ from Lennox's latest LP, Age/Sex/Location, invited Lennox’s silky-smooth entrance. Beneath the veneer of silk curtains caressing either side of the stage, the show imminently felt as a personal, one-woman show supported by her tight-knit backing band. The entourage effortlessly brought together the pieces of Lennox's intricate puzzles: rhythmic basslines in ‘Outside’, heart-wrenching backing vocals in ‘Boy Bye’ and forthright percussive pertinence in ‘Stop By’.
Reminiscent of Lauryn Hill and Beyoncé within the expressive latter, as well as the more recent likes of Sudan Archives and SZA of the former, Lennox effortlessly reigned supreme over her beloved followers, spouting a myriad of relationship scenarios: preaching “waste my time, get on my line, back up every word you say”; intimately inviting to “stop by and undress me”. Whilst it’s her recent repertoire which exudes this unbridled fortitude and intimacy, one couldn’t help but feel the collective yearning from the crowd for her breakout debut LP, Shea Butter Baby - inevitably about to play out in the 2nd half of proceedings.
Writhing between the delicate layering of sumptuous basslines and bonafide vocals, ‘New Apartment’ enacted the inception of Lennox’s earlier discography. Dedicated to her “shea butter babies”, the crowd duly twisted and turned amongst the intimate aura enveloping tonight’s Apollo, drunk on the concoction of modern R&B backed by an inherent self-confidence and a heart-wrenching display of emotions. Whilst this LP's tracks paled in comparison to the more refined qualities of her recent work, the crowd remained fixated - latching onto the Erykah Badu-musicalities or Whitney Houston-vocal prowess, yet nothing could quite prepare for what unfolded next.
As if produced from thin air, the rapper/producer extraordinaire J. Cole emerged onstage in the flesh. Founder of Dreamville Records, which first signed Lennox in 2015, Cole seemed to extract as much shock from the singer as the crowd that night - catching us in a trance of disbelief as the rapper quickly rattled off his feature and retreated out of the spotlight.
As Lennox bid farewell herself soon thereafter, the magnanimous ending imminently made its way into the trembling conversations from those departing. Yet the prowess of Lennox’s backing entourage cannot be overstated, impressively filling their supporting roles in forging this intimate, soothing world of R&B, grappling from the branches of such influential predecessors. Without any intricate lighting rig or visual effects, set only with a thin, translucent set of curtains, Ari Lennox transformed the capacious Apollo into the intimate environment of a dimly-lit jazz club (perhaps over yonder in Camden), imposing her assertive brand of R&B rife with a vocal temerity, leaving the enthralled masses still catching their breath.
8/10
Ari Lennox's latest review, Age/Sex/Location, is out now via Dreamville Records and can be found below.
Photo is courtesy of Ravi Sidhu whose work can be found here.
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