For an artist as polarising as Azealia Banks, playing a venue such as the O2 Victoria Warehouse over 10 years into your career could seem like a risky move. This is however one that seemed to pay off. Debuting in 2011 with her hit song ‘212’, some would argue that Banks has become one of the most controversial names in hip hop - known for her Twitter feuds with Elon Musk, Nicki Minaj, Eminem, Kendrick Lamar and even Lana Del Rey. Whether this has helped or hindered her career is unclear, but what is obvious is that the core fan base she has built over the years is still around- if not growing larger thanks to the help of Tik Tok.
When arriving at the venue I was surprised to see such a mixed crowd of both older Millennials and younger Gen Z. Considering Banks has not had any major releases in the past couple of years besides stand alone singles ‘New Bottega with Torren Foot’ (2023) and ‘Anna Wintour’ (2018); the venue was packed out. With doors opening at 7pm and the support DJ coming on at 7.30 pm I think it was heavily speculated that Banks would be on stage at 9pm. This was, however, a bit of a reach considering all of the Tik Toks that have been going around about how consistently late she has been to all the shows on this tour. The DJ was enthusiastic and entertaining, but lack of stage visuals and lengthy set meant that this got boring quite fast. The crowd seemed to still be very amped up though. Soon enough 10pm rolled around and we got the signal that Banks would be arriving shortly. What I will say is the anticipation that was building in the crowd did not go to waste. Considering Banks doesn’t often visit the UK to tour I imagine for a lot of people this would have been the first time they had seen the artist live. Stepping out onto the stage in a Union Jack corset and black lace knee high boots Banks was radiating her usual fierce enthusiasm and energy that she’s become known for. Having seen a lot of the videos popping up online about previous technical difficulties on this tour I was wondering if it would be the same in this situation, but luckily this didn’t seem to be the case.
Comparing it to footage I had seen from the rest of this UK tour, Manchester seemed to be the most polished and seamless yet - the only real drama being some beef going down in the crowd that has since blown up on tik tok and yet again re-sparked the debate of gig etiquette among Millennials and younger Gen z. I think all in all the show was good. For long time fans who got to sing along with their friends to their favourite Banks tracks and experience her acapella flows and freestyles, it would have been worth the 2 hour wait for her to come on stage. I do however think that for a venue as large as O2 Victoria Warehouse some stage design or pre-planning should have been done to make it more of an experience, especially for an Artist who has been as visually experimental as Azealia Banks has in the past. I also think a 2 hour wait time for a 35 minute set for any artist with just a DJ backing them is a little unfair.
I will say however that Banks is still as talented as ever and I think a lot of people will agree when I say that even with 212 being her biggest, it’s clear she isn’t riding purely on the coattails of a nearly decade old song and her wider discography still holds up solidly to this day.
