I am now ill thanks to Capaldi, but hey, here we are. Anywho, let’s go into detail of how it was, who it was and why it was.
Firstly, for any who doesn’t know who he is (which I’d be a wee bit shocked about...), Lewis Capaldi is a musician from Scotland (Yippee) who became quickly popular around the UK because of his music, which centered around the themes of mental health, specifically that of vulnerability and personal loss of relationships.
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| ID: Lewis with a towel on his head Credit: Buzzfeed |
However, as time went on, Lewis Capaldi’s mental and physical health began to deteriorate from anxiety and a diagnosis of Tourette syndrome in 2023. He was starting to feel the pressures of stardom and found himself changing for the public eye, donning white suits and other similar outfits.
During Glastonbury 2023, his mental health reached a boiling point, which led to him having to stop singing halfway through his most famous song “Someone you loved”, which the crowd compassionately finished for him. This led to him going on hiatus for his mental wellbeing.
Two years later, he has returned to Glastonbury and successfully completed his performance this time. There was an announcement for a UK tour later in the year alongside his new song “Survive”, which encapsulates the personal growth and development Lewis has gone through over those past two years.
Soon, he would make his return to Scotland, with him performing in his hometown of Glasgow on the 13th of September, alongside other talents such as Skye Newman (what a wonderful voice, oh my god) and Aaron Rowe.
Although Lewis isn’t someone I’d see, my mum had no one else to go with and so I went along — not expecting much, but hey, any music is good music to me!
There I was, daundering up to the venue at 6pm. It was already heaving with people, lines zigzagging around the barriers, all eager to get in and see Lewis. Luckily, my electricity is with OVO, sooooo I got tickets early (you’re welcome Mum xoxo).
Anyways, first up was Aaron Rowe, who started at 7pm. His songs consisted of loss, grief, and the homesickness of being far from home. His presence on stage was wonderful, joking with the crowd and giving a wonderful performance that started to get the crowd buzzing.
Then came Skye Newman — her voice was wonderful and very reminiscent of Amy Winehouse’s. She sang of heartbreak, toxic relationships, and dysfunctional love, with the crowd singing out the lyrics to “Family matters”, which gained popularity in a short span of time. And now it was time for the big man himself, Capaldi.
Finally, the moment had come for Lewis Capaldi: the stage started to light up with visuals of windows, rain, and nature with the thundering sounds of music that shook the venue like a storm approaching the crowd. It was suspenseful, and shortly after the band started to come on stage for the beginning of “Survive”, there arrived Lewis, dressed casually in regular day-to-day attire, no suits, no sparkle, just as a regular person ready to sing his heart out for a crowd. The crowd were already singing to their fullest throughout the first song and continued throughout it all. I was enamoured by the visuals of the windows and rain — it made me think of the heaviness of life, when it was hard to move as you watched the rain beat on your windows, wondering what’s next with life, and they had me deep in thought as I attentively listened to the words that he sang.
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| ID: Lewis singing in Glasgow Credit: Ruadhan Stevenson |
Alongside his already released songs, he also played three new songs, with “The day that I die” resonating with me the most. It was written during the hardest parts of his life, and he explained to the crowd in a light-hearted manner, still having a patter with the crowd. The song spoke of feeling loss for what’s next in life with everything feeling so foggy and void; this one hit me hard and reminded me of the overwhelming dysphoria that had enveloped me as I was still discovering myself, that feeling that made the world so bleak.
By the end of the set, the band began to disperse, with only Lewis Capaldi and his mate, Aidan Halliday, remaining on-stage. It was admirable as Lewis and Aiden had come from the same town, with Aiden having been touring alongside Lewis from the start, showing that he had never left his roots behind and always had a piece of home with him as he toured. This is when they played the “final song” of the set, in which he told the crowd “to pretend like it was the last song”, taking a jab at the tradition of encores. Once he came back, he ended the show with three more songs, with the finale of it all being “Someone you loved”, this time finishing it to completion as the crowd belted the lyrics alongside him.
So what did I think of it all? Honestly, I was quite surprised by the whole performance, I didn’t expect to come out of the venue having so much on my mind, yet it was powerful witnessing someone go from their lowest and back to the top after such hardships. It had me looking back at my own hardships, the state of inadequacy I felt for my identity in a heteronormative society, the feelings of fear and shame, worrying about what’ll come with the price of feeling truly at peace in your own body.
One of the best things he said throughout the night was, “if a lazy c*nt like me can do it, then you can”.
So, here I am, after all my burdens, I still survive, feeling at peace with my identity as a queer person within the world.
By Ruadhàn (they/her)