Concert Review: Mabel Is ICONIC At Bowery Ballroom
New Star Alert! New Star Alert! Mabel may have cried in awe of how many people had come to see her, but I was not surprised at how avidly she was loved and will be loved. This young woman is an undeniable star, and similar to Normani, Camila Cabello, and Miley Cyrus’ rises, she feels young but predestined for stardom. From her moves to her presence on the stage/ with the crowd, she was the human embodiment of dynamite.
From Danileigh to Ella Mai, the people are DEMANDING rhythm on their heartbreak. They want the classic, R&B “Why didn’t he love me?” lyrics mixed in with some dancehall, Latin pop, and Hip Hop frequencies. To them, these beats help them say goodbye to the losers that did not love them, Mabel had them all, which is why I am convinced that most of the tickets bought were sold through my BX friends’ group chat. I was seriously looking for Desus and Mero with how good, happy, and even a little Hynotiq the night’s vibe felt. Even Rihanna’s jeweler was there, and, hopefully, is molding Ms. Mabel a piece. She certainly gives a cool, fashionable essence, similar, to the Caribbean queen, which explains why she is the only woman that could rock a neon-blue leotard with two cupids making out and wear fishnet stalkings under thigh-high leather boots.
To her crowd, Mabel looked like the star we wish we could be and, currently, demand. By now, the world would split in half if we saw Beyoncé with some Old Navy Jeans, a tee, and a flip-flop. We wouldn’t handle her being like us, but that is the point of hers, Rihanna, and now Mabel’s power. As she broke into choreography for nearly every song from her debut, High Expectations, the audience was riveted. We were actually getting a show, for which we paid for: outfits, back-up dancers, remixes/cover, and slow-downed love songs. The latter one made me laugh because, even when Mabel slows a track, she can’t help but want to wind up.
Vocally, Mabel gives me “Selena Quintanilla” vibes. She peels her lyrics como una flor, holding and dropping them like they are petals falling into water as she asks, “He loves me? He loves me not?” You add that eternal question over a Caribe-pop flared back-drop, and Mabel is unstoppable. She smashes together the slight “melodrama” we demand from our icons with the fun we command from their songs. For More Information On Mabel Click Here.
