“Don’t tag me as Ali G on Instagram, awright?” She may be this year’s biggest-selling UK debut artist but Anne-Marie Nicholson, bright yellow tracksuit, has lost none of her sense of humour.
Perhaps this groundedness is the result of a live apprenticeship in drum’n’bass troupe Rudimental or, before that, years spent in musical theatre. Whatever it is, the 27-year-old was confidence itself as she strutted around the Brixton stage.
In fairness, having recently supported Ed Sheeran on his recent stadium tour, this 5,000-capacity venue must have felt positively tiny by comparison, and there was every indication that bigger venues beckon once more.
Ciao Adios, one of several hits from her debut Speak Your Mind, was tropical pop in the Dua Lipa mould. Cry was a sympathy-free ode to a no-good ex. Perfect was preceded by vox pops from Ed Sheeran and assorted Instagram stars explaining their definition of “perfect”, while the song’s body-positive lyrics made it sound like Christina Aguilera’s Beautiful for the Snapchat generation.
As enjoyable as Anne-Marie is live, she’s unlikely to win any prizes for originality. Alarm, for instance, is a fine pop song but its dancehall beats and guttural vocals make it so close to Rihanna that she should really get a royalty cheque for it.
Similarly, an older song, Gentleman, sounded like an Adele offcut. Anne-Marie was best when being herself — which is to say, fun and down-to-earth. “I used to just stay with bad boyfriends so I could cheat on them,” she laughed, launching into the reggaeton of Bad Girlfriend, while FRIENDS was a frank rebuffal of someone who’d mistaken friendship for romance.
Lasting success will depend on Anne-Marie carving out a believable identity of her own, but she has all the necessary ingredients: catchy songs, an adoring crowd and a boatload of charisma. As Ali G might say, her prospects are looking proper wicked.
