Since moving from the East coast to the Twin Cities a few years ago, I’ve found myself disappointed by artists skipping us on their tours more times that I can count. So, when Lana Del Rey announced that Minneapolis would be the first stop on her world tour, I literally jumped for joy. Lana’s career thus far has been a very polarizing one, with extreme fans and trolling haters flooding the comment section of everything she posts. Her most recent album, Lust For Life, seems to have turned some of those “haters” to the light side and made fans of them with its many collaborations and its sultry, enticing sound.
Some Lana Del Rey super fans had been lined up at the Target Center overnight in -10 degree weather. Even those who weren’t *that* committed arrived incredibly early and by the time I arrived the line was too long for me to even measure. Once I had been let in, it was easy for me to find the merch table merely because of the giant ocean of fans that were surrounding it. I was impressed by the reasonable prices of the “Lust for Life” hoodies and tees, but moved along to my seat to hear the opener.
Jhene Aiko, the first act at last night’s Target Center show, has collaborated with many hugely successful artists like Chris Brown, Big Sean, and Drake. That being said, she stood alone wonderfully, too. Her strong, distinctive voice commanded the attention of the Target Center even though fans were still making their way into the show when her set began. She was gracious and thankful to the crowd and left everyone satisfied but still itching for the main event.
Watching the stagehands setup the elaborate set that Lana Del Rey was about to perform on was almost as entertaining as the performance itself. There were plants and rocks galore, swings, and a Hollywood sign surrounded by a piano, drums, a cello, and multiple keyboards. The lights re-dimmed as the band entered the stage and nearly every phone in the house began recording. Then, finally… Lana Del Rey appeared on stage. Clad in a vintage looking white mini dress with two barrettes separating her middle-parted hair, she started the night off with a newer song, “13 Beaches.”
As she moved through her set list and played songs off of nearly every album *and* some covers, everyone around me sang along to each song that was played (including me.) Crowd favorites seemed to be her older songs, but only by a hair.
Throughout the show, Del Rey interacted with the crowd with ease, even getting off the stage to take selfies during “National Anthem,” making everyone not front and center even more jealous.
Towards the end of the set, Lana sat down on a swing to sing “Video Games” and (almost) the whole room broke down in tears as they tried to sing along. That wasn’t the only time tears were flowing freely, but it was definitely the most prevalent moment.
The final song of the night, “Off to the Races,” left the evening on a higher note with a lot less tears than at other points throughout the show. Lana left the stage thanking everyone, blowing kisses, and just being generally sweet and pleasant. As a long time fan but first time concert-goer, I walked out of the Target Center not even minding that the temperatures were below zero. Lana Del Rey exceeded my already very high expectations and set an almost unbeatable high bar for everyone else I will see live in 2018.
Setlist:
- 13 Beaches
- Pretty When You Cry
- Cherry
- Scarborough Fair (Simon & Garfunkel Cover)
- Born To Die
- Blue Jeans
- White Mustang
- National Anthem
- When the World was at War We Kept Dancing
- Music to Watch Boys To
- Lust For Life
- Change
- Black Beauty
- Young and Beautiful
- Ride
- Ultra violence
- Love
- Video Games
- Summertime Sadness
- Serial Killer
- Off to the Races
