Before reading it, drop everything! Because this article will need your full attention. GEMINI, BLASÉ, Kwaca and DJ Pool blew my mind at their London show! DJ Pool just took us straight to the disco world, and it felt like stepping into Fabric or Ministry of Sound on a Saturday night, bass in your chest and lights in your soul. The beat? Relentless. The mixes? Dirty smooth. DJ Pool served it hot, flipping genres like pancakes at an afterparty – hip-hop drops one second, house groove the next, and back again like it’s nothing.

And the way he vibed with the crowd? Chef’s kiss. He was cracking jokes, reading every beat in the room, and throwing his hands up high – feeding off the energy like a mirrorball reflecting pure hype. That bass drop? It didn’t just hit your ears; it shook the floor and stirred your soul. Legs trembling, heartbeat locked to the BPM. DJ Pool had everyone amped… until Kwaca hit the stage. His set took things in a whole new direction, but trust me, every second was pure showmanship.

Kwaca, a singer-songwriter, producer, guitarist, stepped onto the stage and brought with him a sound I’ve longed to hear. Music that straddles between soft rock, grunge spirit, and at times the warmth that reminds me of Damien Rice, and everything else on top of it, yet unmistakably stamped with his own vibe. Dressed in black, effortlessly stylish, Kwaca carried a quiet intensity.

He opened with Slo Motion, just him and his electric guitar, as DJ Pool spun fire from behind, He turned up the heat with a throbbing, atmospheric vibe. Then came Captured, groovier, smooth, yet never losing that softness in presence. There’s a tenderness in the way Kwaca delivers his vocals – understated, real – a beautiful match to the music world he creates.

“Hi London, how are you guys doing?” he smiled. “It’s my first time here and I’m having so much fun”. That gentle honesty carried through to Mine. a track swaying at the edge of blues and soul, sung in English with a striking sense of control. Nothing in Kwaca’s set felt repetitive, each song felt unique, with every note adding to the bigger emotional picture. Feels like You followed, slow and delicate – its subtle guitar solos like quiet thoughts whispered between verses. His songwriting shines here. Then 4Life – a shift to acoustic, a change of guitar – a song of love, tender and raw.

He closed with Like a Movie – another acoustic gem, again calling to mind the spirit of Irish singer-songwriters like Damien Rice, yet never imitative. Just honest. Even as the sound danced with imperfections (from the venue not the artist), Kwaca stayed present, delivering a performance that was genuine and moving. There is no doubt that the artist deserves a show of his own. A singular voice with a superb gift for melody, mood, and meaning.

After Kwaca it was time for BLASÉ. Drenched in blue and gripping a bottle like a mic accessory, BLASÉ hit the stage with the velocity of a cheetah on the chase, spitting bars at a neck-breaking pace. This was an intense ride through the best of his trap catalogue, full of energy and no breaks.

Opening with More from his 2024 full-length album Another Verse, BLASÉ proved early that he wasn’t here to play it safe. The track hit hard, his delivery slick and sharp as he prowled the stage like it belonged to him (because, let’s be real – it did). Loadin’ and Stupid followed, both off the same album, pushing the crowd deeper into a no-breath zone. It was pure momentum, no room for lull.

Then came Track Suit – not grime, but grime-tinged, enough to make the floor vibrate under its weight. A nod to the UK, maybe, but strictly redefined in BLASÉ’s trap terms. Peace Out and Pop It were straight-up crowd detonators – climbing barriers, diving in like he was reuniting with long-lost homies. Pop It in particular felt like a pool party turned riot, with the crowd soaking up every second of it. Mid-set saw a run of chaos tracks: 12345678, Mean, Turtle. Turtle especially. That was gym-level intensity. Blasé’s ability to control the crowd with his voice alone was conductor-level precision. One moment you’re jumping, next you’re swaying, all because he told you to. Then, a smooth flex: Chosen One, The crowd roared at the first beat drop. One thing is for sure, BLASÉ is not only a part of the scene, he’s the architect of it.

Closing out with Take it Flip it and the beast mode BLASÉOUL (originally featuring Park Jae-bum, Kugi, and Oygli), BLASÉ showed what trap power looks like. Bars flew like punches, crowd bounced like a spring-loaded floor. Name Tag, Holiday, and the final hit We Higher sent the venue into euphoric mayhem. Hands up, phones out, people screaming like it was a championship win. BLASÉ doesn’t perform, he unleashes. His 40 minute set was filled with energy, pacing, and mic control – a reminder that in the K-trap and hip-hop world he is the wave.

After BLASÉ, it was high time for the headliner to take the stage: GEMINI. As part of his Miles Away World Tour, the singer once again impressed me with his live performance.

GEMINI’S artistry lives in the sweet tension between R&B soul and hip‑hop grit, and nowhere is that alchemy more apparent than in his latest Right Now remix. With Kwaca’s electric guitar wailing like a vintage Marshall amp set to eleven, he delivers a soft rock‑and‑roll rebirth of a song already shining with sensual urgency. But don’t let that rock bravado fool you: GEMINI is as tender as he is bold. On Ford, he drapes a shimmering pop‑R&B melody over those same guitar strings, and his voice – honeyed, hypnotic – cuts straight to the heart. He wears vulnerability like a second skin, admitting his fear of love even as he pledges his whole self. “Whenever you feel like alone I’ll be there for you, if you need me to I’ll be sitting, waiting for you,” he seems to croon, and in those simple, poetic lines he captures the ache of devotion with crystal clarity.

Turn back the clock to 2022’s Mon Amour, and you’ll find a quieter magic. Faster tracks or laid‑back ballads, every arrangement feels tailor‑made to soothe: it’s like wrapping your ears in cashmere. GEMINI’S voice floats above subtle synth flourishes and gentle acoustic plucks, creating an oasis of calm in a chaotic world. His live performances add another dimension entirely. On Up Late, he moves smoothly from one song to the next, each transition as smooth as silk. And when he unleashes Cloud Nine from his In too deep  EP – originally featuring Bren Joy – you realise that his falsetto is more than a vocal trick; it’s a direct line to pure, unfiltered emotion. The arrangement soars, the crowd rises with him, and for a moment time stops.

Groove is his playground on Body On Me, the 3rd‑EP collaboration with PENOMECO, where every bass thump and lyrical twist feels custom‑made for the dance floor. Then there’s Miles Away, another  In too deep gem which layers melancholic guitar licks over a beat that beats like a restless heart. Yet for all its polish, it’s in the honesty of Broken Love that GEMINI shines. In under two minutes, he conjures a chasm of loss – “Where’s my love? It used to be so alive…” – and you can’t help but feel the echo of that void in your own chest. It’s heartbreak distilled to its purest form, and he nails it with an economy of words that would make a poet weep.

GEMINI is not afraid to flirt with fun, either – tracks like Hola and Bad have just enough swagger to keep you smiling as you groove. And Inside Out (from the 2021 release of the same name) shows off his knack for crafting hooks that lodge themselves in your brain like earworms from another dimension. Without a doubt, the artist is a shape‑shifter who never loses his center. He brings the sweet aura of R&B soul, the sharp edge of hip‑hop, and, now, the reckless abandon of rock ’n’ roll, all wrapped in vocals so compelling they could soothe riots. GEMINI is not only a fantastic artist – he’s a mood, an experience, a masterclass in emotional honesty. And if that doesn’t make you believe that GEMINI is one of the most incredible voices in modern music, well… you’re simply not listening closely enough.

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Written by Maggie Gogler

Featured image courtesy of AT AREA

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