DANIEL CAESAR AT FABRIQUE MILANO

Arriving at Fabrique on Saturday night, I didn’t know what to expect from Daniel Caesar’s concert. In any case, after him winning the Grammy for Best R&B Performance with “Best Part” earlier this year, it is safe to say my expectations were high. Together with critical acclaim, the popularity of the Canadian artist has grown immensely over the past couple of years. Fabrique certainly is smaller than the venues where Daniel Caesar would play if the concert would’ve been in Canada or the USA. However, this made for a very special and intimate vibe, giving the audience the opportunity to be completely immersed in his music.

The artist starts off with a few songs of his new album, “Case study 01”, and his smooth vocals fill the room with instant delight. After listening to “Cyanide” and “Entropy” the crowd is eager to hear more of his soothing and relatable lyrics. Even though the album was only released this June, the songs are already embedded into the brains of his listeners.

Caesar’s graceful and authentic performance gives a whole new dimension to his music. While only illuminated by a single spot light, he grabs a guitar and starts to play the first tunes to “Are you ok?”. The room turns quiet to listen and enjoy the beautiful simplicity of this moment. As he continues, with “Too deep to turn back”, the passion in his lyrics becomes tangible.

The artist knows exactly when to involve the audience and lets them sing along with the next two songs. After all, everyone knows the lyrics of “Get you” and “Best part” by heart. Hearing the crowd belt out all of the words makes it clear that true fans showed up to see him perform that night.

“Blessed”, another fan-favorite of Caesar’s previous album “Freudian”, gives way to a natural feeling of connection between the artist and his supporters. Powerful vocals accompanied by his band create an easy way to enjoy the concert, to say the least.  Closing the show with the much anticipated encore “Japanese denim”, the singer succeeds to mesmerize the audience members one last time.

The show seemed to have gone by with the blink of an eye. The amount of energy, love and soul make for a concert that can be savored on the tram ride home. All that is left for me to say, is that expectations were met from beginning to end.

Eva Stevens