“King. King. King”

The chants of the crowd swirled around the Metro Theatre as the legion of fans waited for one of the biggest new names in Indian music to hit the stage. The anticipation was palpable as the crowd, made up primarily of the Indian diaspora, celebrated after a preceding day of cricketing triumph. 

Then, as the clock inched closer to 10pm, the beat suddenly dropped and the sounds of hip-hop began to perforate through the theatre. In a flash of smoke, King hit the stage, decked out in all-white attire. Shards of light pierced through the theatre and King’s beats swirled through the air as the man from Delhi launched into his setlist. 

“King is in the building,” he said as he announced his presence to the crowd.

King’s music reflects an increasing trend in the modern Indian music industry towards Western-tinged stylings, with hip-hop and R&B heavily present in his music. The songs performed were devoid of space, filling the arena with a heavy ‘doof’ as the star bounced around the stage.  

Perhaps even more interestingly, there was strong classic rock influence in King’s band. Many of the numbers were complete with Queen-esque virtuosic riffs, which only further excited the crowd. 

King had a confidence to him in his performing demeanour, almost to a level of arrogance at first glance. But when scratching beyond the surface, there was a humility about the set of a man who seemed genuinely overjoyed to be playing in Australia and sharing his story. The crowd was ravenous and hanging upon every interaction with King and he obliged with the adulation the crowd desired, both in Hindi and in English. 

“To be honest guys, I’m having the best time of my life,” he said. “Thank you so much.”

As King continued in his set, the crowd was transfixed into ethereality, with the songs morphing into another as the crowd jumped as one. This allowed the performer to soar, rising above the crowd through a variety of styles to facilitate true connection. While the sound balance was not perfect, with the microphones blaring through the theatre well over the mix, this mattered little to the crowd, who took it in their stride as they soaked up the moment. 

The set was perhaps slightly too long, especially given the very delayed start, but the crowd largely didn’t seem to mind, rather they were thrilled to be in the presence of someone who would likely not be playing such a small venue in future. There was a generosity of spirit among those in the room, all feasting in the moment as King rotated through his set. 

Earlier in the night, the crowd heard from tricksingh, who despite possessing an inimitable self-confidence, struggled to hit the same heights as the headliner. Not aided by an apparent confusion as to where the set was being performed (he referred to being in Melbourne multiple times), the Punjabi rapper largely failed to connect with the crowd, with music that felt slightly more derivative and a presence that bordered on off-putting at times. Whilst no doubt having a bright future, his set might be in need of further refinement to reach and connect with his audience. 

As King reached the end of his set, he saved his biggest hit, “Maan Meri Jaan,” for the crowd. As he slowed the pace of the song right down, he let the audience sing the words back to him, to which they gratefully obliged. As he then launched into his own verse, the crowd followed him around the stage, much in the same way they had followed his journey to this point. It was a fantastic way to cap off a wonderful night with one of the most promising performers on the Indian music scene. 

Rating: ★★★★1/2

King – Metro Theatre – 24^th November 2024