Kehlani review: ‘A masterclass from a Grammy-nominated star’

Having performed whilst battling through illness at London’s O2 Arena, it’s safe to say that the O2 Victoria Warehouse made for a more intimate setting, but having recovered from illness and no longer sounding like a “llama” as Kehlani joked early in the set, the singer produced a show laden with raunchy but perfectly choreographed dancing, twerking, pristine vocals and their willingness to experiment with different styles.

The setlist was heavily focused on ‘Crash’ as the singer raced through the synth-heavy hit ‘Next 2 U’ that is laced with elements of percussion, the experimental ballad ‘GrooveTheory’ and the expressive ‘What I Want’ in quick succession to set the tone for what would be a set jam-packed with hits. However, the country-influenced, acoustic-led and emotive ‘Better Not’ was a notable omission from the setlist.

Although traditionally known for being an R&B and soul singer, Kehlani’s willingness to fuse elements of hard rock into their sound for their latest effort ‘Crash’ has added another dimension to their sound. Tracks such as ‘You Should Be Here’, the rap-infused ‘The Way’, and the melodic ‘Lose my Wife receive an extra kick in a live setting as a guitarist, who reminded me of Korn’s Jonathan Davis, repeatedly solos with a chugging guitar and is complemented by powerhouse drumming that reverberated around the Victoria Warehouse.

As the night unfolded, Kehlani controlled the pace of the show to perfection as tracks such as ‘Clothes Off’ that fuses R&B with electronic elements and allows both Kehlani and KWN to exchange notes, ‘Crash’ with its enchanting R&B melody is complemented perfectly with a catchy but soulful guitar riff and a riveting performance of Jordan Adetunji’s viral TikTok hit ‘Kehlani’ goes down well in a live setting.

Cutting a candid figure on a figure, Kehlani expressed their vulnerabilities and the reflective ‘Border’ provides an opportunity for the singer to encourage self-care and to address “demons and disorders”. Whilst the string-laden and sentimental ‘Everything’, the acoustic-led ‘Honey’ and the emotive ‘Chapel’ - the latter containing a spellbinding guitar solo - allows the singer’s fine collection of ballads to shine in a live setting.

In the end, Kehlani performed a whopping 32 tracks in just over 90 minutes, allowing memorable hooks, punchy guitars and dynamic drum grooves to shine in rapid-fire snippets to help maintain the relentless pace of the show.

In comparison to major arenas such as the O2 Arena, the Kia Forum and the Chase Center in San Francisco, Manchester’s O2 Victoria Warehouse made for a more intimate setting than what the singer has been performing at, but no matter where Kehlani is you’ll be treated to a genre-hopping masterclass from a Grammy-nominated star. As a performer with a mesmerising voice, the sky is certainly the limit for Kehlani, and it wouldn’t shock me if the Co-Op Live is the destination for their next performance in Manchester.