There is no greater feeling than being at a concert with friends, especially when seeing an artist you have loved for so long. On June 1, I attended Niall Horan’s “The Show World Tour” with two of my closest friends for its stop in Alpharetta, GA.
The three of us have always been huge One Direction fans and have loved supporting the boys on their solo tours through the years. I am a certified Niall girl and have loved him since the band’s early days. Even though I’ve always loved Harry, Louis, and Zayn, Niall has always held my heart in the palm of his hands.
I had planned to see Niall on his “Nice To Meet Ya Tour” in 2020, which was sadly canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. I was crushed when the tour was canceled, so I was determined to see him on this tour and love every moment of it.
One of the best parts of this tour is that the majority of the tour stops were at our door venues, so we could appreciate the summer weather and have plenty of space to move. My group was sitting on the lawn toward the back of the space, so while we were far from the stage, we had a perfect view of everything and plenty of room to dance around.
We got to the venue a bit early to see the opener for the tour, Del Water Gap. I had listened to a few Del Water Gap songs before, but seeing them live truly made me appreciate their lyricism and musicality. They started their set with the song, Coping on Unemployment, an introspective song about navigating your twenties after the effects of the pandemic.
This song is relatable to nearly everyone at this age, and hearing it live was a nice reminder that no one is alone in their struggles. Even though we are a few years out from 2020, the toll that year took on us all still manifests in different ways. Being out in the warm, southern summer air and listening to music with strangers was not a luxury we could afford back then, and hearing this song reminded us to appreciate the moment we were in.
It didn’t take long for the band to win over the audience and they soon played to a very enthusiastic audience. They finished their set with the song, Ode to a Conversation Stuck in Your Throat. This song stuck out to me due to its heartfelt lyrics about falling for someone and realizing that you want them and no one else. You don’t want anyone else to touch this person like you do, and you fear that someone may take them from you. The raw emotion of this song was the perfect end to the set.
As the sun set, the LED screens on stage lit up with theatrical visuals and Niall took the stage with his 2019 hit, Nice To Meet Ya. This was one of the first singles from the Heartbreak Weather album that fans fell in love with. Upbeat and inviting, this was the perfect song to open his set. From there, he played fan favorites from his previous albums, including a mashup of Small Talk with Stevie Nicks’ The Edge of Seventeen, and On The Loose off of his debut solo album Flicker.
Once the crowd was hyped up from the first three songs, Niall shifted his set to play more songs from his most recent album, The Show, after which the tour was named. I wasn’t as familiar with this album, but when he started playing Never Grow Up, I started singing along with everyone else.
An acoustic guitar was brought out and Niall began an acoustic portion of the set, complete with his debut solo single, This Town, and songs from The Show including Science and You Could Start A Cult. This portion of the set was the perfect time to sit and soak it all in.
A known romantic, Niall’s love songs never fail to make a crowd swoon. After his acoustic songs, he played Heaven, a dreamy song about falling in love and feeling like every moment of being with a partner is pure bliss. Looking around and seeing couples and groups of friends dancing was so heartwarming while I danced with my own friends. After playing Must Be Love, another romantic song about the power of loving someone and finding the solace of being devoted to another.
From there, the moment we had all been waiting for finally arrived. The One Direction boys are known to play songs from One Direction songs on their solo tours, and it’s always a fun game to see which song they’re going to play. This time, Niall played Stockholm Syndrome from the album Four.
This is one of my favorite One Direction songs and hearing it live always makes me lose my mind. Harry played this song on his first solo tour in 2017 and I’ve been wanting to hear it live again ever since. While the majority of his audience was women in their early twenties and older who grew up with him, there was a large handful of children with their parents who were likely hearing this song for the first time. It took me back to being in middle school and listening to this song on repeat as soon as I heard it.
The only disappointment was that he didn’t play any other One Direction songs, but this was quickly forgotten as he played more songs from his first album, including the emotional Paper Houses, Mirrors, and Still.
Niall ended the night with his hit single, Slow Hands. A slower, sexy song, Slow Hands has been popular amongst fans both old and new, and people who have just heard it in passing on the radio. The crowd went wild for the final song and we all left tired and happy. Niall truly knows how to put on a fun, interactive show and I highly recommend seeing him the next time he’s close to you.
Conaretta, GA
Written By Tessa Brainard
*copyright not intended. Fair use act, section 107.