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Loyle Carner, tour review: Charming hero of hip hop lets his music do the talking

Family man: Loyle Carner performed with a black-and- white photograph of his family in the background: Steve Gillett/Livepix
Family man: Loyle Carner performed with a black-and- white photograph of his family in the background: Steve Gillett/Livepix

Loyle Carner is no stranger to selling out shows.

Yet last Friday, the south London MC seemed bemused that for all the strides he’s made in his five-year career — opening for heavyweight hip hop vet Nas, landing in tastemaker polls and, well, reviving UK hip hop — he managed to sell out not one, but two nights at the O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire. On at least four occasions, the wide-eyed 21-year-old stopped to stare at his devoted legions, dropping F-bombs and shaking his head while they chanted or lobbed flowers on a stage charmingly decorated like a living room. “I’m f***ing overwhelmed,” he admitted.

But between his bouncy showmanship and enthusiastic chatter, it was obvious he wasn’t going to allow the magnitude of the moment throw him off, at least for his beloved family’s sake. A smiley black and white portrait of them shone in the background, while he clutched to his late step-father’s Eric Cantona shirt throughout his lively hour-long set.

On the mighty The Isle of Arran, he was a joyous conductor, gesturing the crowd to sing along to the choir-sampling chorus. This quickly turned to clap-alongs on No Worries, where he was joined by his “favourite rapper” Jehst and his regular collaborator Rebel Kleff.

A cover of A Tribe Called Quest’s Check the Rhime was a fun-filled tribute, and evidence of his affinity to jazzy, Nineties hip hop. However, it was Florence, Carner’s tender tribute to a sister he wished he had, that scored the crowd’s biggest approval rating.

Provocative confessionals of family life and growing pains is what you get with Carner, and when he wasn’t laying into a “horrible girl I used to know” on the mournful The Seamstress he was throwing jabs at his absentee father on Tierney Terrace. The night was let down only by the speedy preamble that came before each new song: you could hardly hear him. Thankfully, he let the good music do most of the talking — although it was his mum who delivered the final offering of the night courtesy of a video of her dialogue from Son of Jean (feat. Mum and Dad). A fella this charming wouldn’t have it any other way.