Arthur Nery’s recent concert confirmed what a lot of Pinoy pop music fans already know: he’s a big hit.
Of course, Arthur has been steadily building his star status ever since breaking big with his 2019 album “Letters Never Sent.”
Still, the “Arthur Nery” concert is a welcome confirmation of how far the singer has come in his career.
And we just love these first major show types, because a., it’s the first time a music act gets to perform every song on their repertoire with an energy only a ‘first solo concert’ can coax out. And b., the whole house is there for you.
And let’s call said energy, glow--both of which Arthur evidently have as he opened with a string-section version of his slow groove R&B ballad “Isa Lang.”
Quick note: when you open your set with your most recent single and your fans go bonkers. You’re off to a good start.
And Arthur knows it too.
He croons and the crowd of mostly Gen Z’s (or latter millennials) goes crazy. And Nery takes it up a notch with another fan-fave song in “Take All The Love,” then cools it a bit with “Life Puzzle.”
How bout said house being there for you? Well, it was during Arthur’s first spiel that he got to hear everybody, and what a feeling that must be for him. Who can only say his thanks and look with wonder at the filled-to-the-balcony venue as it reacts to every motion and word that he says.
The number of times somebody called out “love you!” and him answering back “I love you too!,” might not be the most dynamic of fan-artist communication, but its real and there was a lot of it that night. For an admitted introvert, Arthur did well in the spiels department, even having his comedic moment when he had to read off a script for his sponsors.
But of course, it’s about the music and there was a lot of it that night. Hot spots in his set list were the excellent sounding string quartet that decked songs such as “Binhi” and his version of “Rainbow.” The singer also covered the APO Hiking Society hit “Yakap Sa Dilim” which really fit his style to T.
And while Arthur one by one, checked off the must-do songs from his hit-heavy repertoire that included “Happy w u,” “Higa” and even deep cuts like “Got Me Tangled,” “Cotton Candy,” we still missed one of his big hits in “Pelikula” (which technically, is a Janine Teñoso track) but perhaps her absence on said show didn’t warrant said song getting on the setlist.
But the guests that were there were more than enough: John Roa sang “Dati.” Opener Just Boys’ Leon Oceña. Fine sounding “Gusto Wit Ya” singer Deny and Cean Jr. (performing their collab-track “Still Miss You”) and the latter’s own “YK.”
Arthur also used the show to launch an unreleased track titled “Segundo, siguro” and then closed the show with, you guessed it, “Pagsamo.”
But more than anything, the sold-out show at the New Frontier Theatre is the singer’s big thank-you to his fans to which he owes his current status. A theatre-sized thanks as Arthur Nery can’t help but gush his gratitude to those who came and watched and reflected back all the love he was giving that night a thousand fold.