You may have heard of Paris Paloma through the release of her 2023 single ‘Labour’, a song which quickly became a universal feminist anthem added another layer entirely to what it is to be a woman. However buckle up because if you thought that chart topping single was powerful, Paloma’s debut album Cacophony has made quite a splash. After its 2024 release, Paloma has shone whilst gracing us with her folk/alternative/indie repertoire on the BBC Music Introducing stage at Glastonbury, The Late Show making her US television debut as well as performing at sold out venues across the UK; one of which I had the pleasure of witnessing last Friday.
The O2 Shepherds Bush Empire atmosphere felt calm and peaceful with Sarah Julia as the support artist playing songs from their recent EP release Only Making it Worse. These two are an angelic musical duo whose songs representing sisterhood laced with vulnerability. The two women created a choral sound with echoing harmonies bouncing around the venue that practically had audiences drooling at the mouth. The crowd was given an intimate insight into their diary entries with lyrics such as ‘I don’t wanna fear having daughters, I don’t wanna have to say, Baby learn from my mistakes’. This Folk/Pop duo from Amsterdam stripped backed the lights, sound and music to its core, creating a clear sense of the “calm before the storm”.
The lights faded and it was now home to Paloma’s world: beautiful pink lighting, white banners scattered the stage with illustrations of bears, wolves, lyrics or Paloma herself. The crowd wasn’t sure whether to jump on stage and enter the wardrobe to Narnia however it was clear the stage was set for a battle and Paloma was leading us in. Bang on 9pm Paloma made her appearance wearing a cape and a smile like she had been born for this moment (we could practically see the Florence and the Machine posters on her bedroom wall). Paloma glowed with happiness and from the moment ‘my mind (now)’ began the crowd was silent as if a leader was calling her troops. When ‘I thought I had a temper, but I guess I thought I was immune’ dropped with a booming base fans went wild as if given the all clear to charge at the enemy.
This explosive opening was just the beginning because we rolled on swiftly to ‘drywall’ a folk-like tune unlike the alternative feel of ‘my mind (now). For the duration of the gig audience jumped between revolution to mythical peace, occasionally pivoting of course with solo moments of acoustic harmonies that could melt butter.
In her silky dress Paloma took a moment in the midst of 2000 people to emotionally dedicate ‘knitting song’ to her best friend who was hearing it for the first time whilst dancing along side Dame Emma Thompson! Paloma noted that she enjoys learning about “the passion of love through the wisdom of generations of women”. Paloma then transitioned wonderfully to her next set referring to her hatred of a Patriarchy, that it is simply “a circle of dogs all wagging their tails for each other”. Due to the current news story hanging in the air the timing of this song ‘Good Boy’ was a gift and to say the crowd broke out in laughter would be an understatement. ‘Good boy! You’re working exactly as intended/Has the penny dropped? You’re never gonna get it’, the cheering was revolutionary, like chanting in a forest around a bonfire due to red lit candles — Paloma began to feel like an art installation of the highest quality.
This disassembled and Paloma brought her guitar forward encouraging audience participation for ‘triassic love song’. Giggling and smiling at each other the crowd sang what she asked ‘thats all that I was darling’. Paloma’s voice sparkles; picture proposals, landscapes, dramatic moments — the best moments of life. However, what stood out so impressively was Paloma’s ability to speak to a crowd like they were her closest friends. The audience was looked in the eyes and delivered provoking thoughts on feminism, body image, the patriarchy, scientific love triangles, and many more topics with a colloquial style like a politic leader who also just so happened to be an incredibly gifted musician.
Finally we got our penultimate song ‘Hunter’, I can still hear the chanting in my head at full volume and commitment ‘if you were easy to kill I would’ve done it already’; it was one of the most powerful moments of the night. The audiences communal participation highlights the cacophony version of the released song echoing the album title and with fierce justification. This led to the moment the show’s foundation had been built for — ‘Labour’. Hearing a feminist anthem live with the commitment of 2000 people behind it is quite an experience, one that will not be forgotten. ‘All day, every day, therapist, mother, maid / Nymph, then a virgin, nurse, then a servant’, the crowd was split between chaotic behaviour of appreciation for the relatability and feral-ness of personal realisation. It was powerful and demanding and felt endless. The crowd were allowed to be themselves, no apologies or masks — if only the music industry had more artists brave enough to write like Paloma.
A refreshing ending to Paloma’s gig was that her wonderfully spirited fan’s seemed to not want to leave the venue — there were no last trains to rush off to. When a song that had been missed off the setlist began to play they were thrown into a graceful, beautiful ‘fairy-dance’ (something that resembled B-Roll footage for the end credits of The Fellowship of the Ring mixed with an organised flashmob). Strangers danced together wanting Friday the 8th of June 2025 to last forever.
Attending Paloma’s gig will inspire a person to ask the difficult questions and stand-up for the unpopular opinion. This musical experience will leave you re-living the gig all the way home and I am sure months, years to come. Paris Paloma continues performing this summer around the UK, Europe and the States and if I were you I would run not walk to see her live!
