beabadoobee brought us back to our angsty, exciting teen years in first Manila show

Picture this. It's the early 2000s. You throw your school bag on the floor. You sit down, turn on MTV, and hear a pop rock song.

That’s what beabadoobee sounds like. That late afternoon after school, when you're an angsty, confused, yet curious and excited teen. It's not a phase, mom!

The Filipina, UK-raised singer-songwriter went back home to Manila to perform for her loyal fans for the first time at the New Frontier Theater.

With an audience mostly made up of teens up to those in their late 20s, it’s as if everyone came with the resounding reason — that Bea’s relatable pop rock anthems make them feel understood as they navigate life.

Clad in a modernized Barong Tagalog, a black skirt, and boots, beabadoobee says, “I’m back, baby!” before opening the show with “Worth It” to a hyped crowd.

^{Photo by Nika Roque}

As the crowd screams, “I love you, Bea!” she plays the first notes of “Together” on her guitar.

beabadoobee then heads into the angsty “Care,” before the crowd gets excited as they scream the lyrics to “Yoshimi, Forest, Magdalene.”

"Ang tagalog ko konti lang, but it's good to be back home," Bea told her fans before singing and dancing along to “He Gets Me So High.”

After that, the 22-year-old star picked up her guitar again. “I released an album called ‘Beatopia.’ This song’s my favorite, it’s called ‘See you Soon.’”

To her fans up on the balcony, she asked, “Are you doing good up there?” She added, “You’ll like this one,” before singing “the perfect pair.” It was during this song that she sat on the edge of the stage for a bit right in front of her supporters.

beabadoobee gave some theatrics with “Sun More Often,” by playing a recorded version of the chorus on loop right before performing it live.

The Gen Z icon followed this with “She Plays Bass” and “Dye It Red,” tracks that are both about discovering one’s identity.

beabadoobee hyped up the crowd again when she said, “This is gonna be a fun one, I promise,” before “Talk,” the alternative anthem about complicated relationships.

^{Photo by Nika Roque}

Fans continued to sing their hearts out with “10:36” and she let them sing the last verse: “I don’t want to, yeah yeah.”

“Ang init!” Bea said before jumping into “Back To Mars,” where she got closer to the audience again.

“This is my last song, charot!” The crowd sang along with her for “Last Day On Earth.”

beabadoobee then put her guitar down, and she and her band left the stage.

After quick chants of “Isa pa!” Bea went back on stage by herself and got her guitar again. She asked the crew to turn on the lights so she could see all her fans.

“Mahal na mahal ko kayo,” she said. “Thanks for coming down. I was [a little] afraid that no one was gonna fucking come, so thanks for coming. It means a lot to me. We’ll sing this one together, right?”

Following screams, the crowd gave their all to beabadoobee’s viral hit “Coffee,” and she giggled while singing too.

“I love you guys, this is our last song,” Bea said.

It was another fun one as fans rocked out to “Cologne.”

“I love you guys,” beabadoobee said one last time before closing the show for real.

Born in Iloilo and raised in London, Beatrice Kristi Laus began recording music as beabadoobee in 2017. At just 22 years old, she already has two albums and five diverse EPs released under Dirty Hit, the same label that manages The 1975, Filipino artist No Rome, and Rina Sawayama, and many others.

She was also nominated for a BRIT Award and BBC Sound Of. Plus, she was able to play at Coachella, Glastonbury, Governors Ball, and Mad Cool this year. —JCB, GMA News