Carly Rae Jepsen's Dedicated is without question the best pop album of the year. To support her recent masterpiece, she brought the Dedicated Tour to NYC for two nights of incendiary pop bliss.
It'd be easy to write off Carly Rae as a one hit wonder behind the international smash hit "Call Me Maybe" and even if you did that, you wouldn't necessarily be wrong, but you'd for sure be missing out on some of the most extraordinary pop songs of the past few years. Playing mostly the jams from E·MO·TION and her most recent record, the Canadian Pop Queen brought New York's Hammerstein Ballroom to its feet as an enraptured crowd partied along to the incessant melodies and outright fun that comes with CRJ's massive pop numbers. In fact her only real pitfall might be that her songs are a bit on the shorter side and if they all went on for another measure and chorus, it'd be hard to question her place amongst pop royalty. Still, even with the brevity of her songs the passion far outweighs the length of each track and watching her deliver number after number with such conviction is truly a sight to see. Staring things off with "No Drug Like Me" and "E·MO·TION" were the perfect intros to the evening and hitting the crowd early with "Run Away With Me" was a sure fire way to get the crowd hyped and the sax solo certainly took things up a notch. From there on out, it was hit after hit and hearing the new tracks live only helped to establish her place amongst the greatest in the game. "Julien" and "Happy Not Knowing" were bops that saw the crowd keep the energy flowing and as she casually slid into "Call Me Maybe" a near moment of panic burst throughout the crowd. Easily one of the biggest write-off tracks of the past decade, hearing it live (and watching a crowd lose their mind to the song) is a truly wonderful experience and one that highlights her significance in the pop scene. Her ability write sugary, bubblegum pop hits is uncanny and in a live setting with a large crowd collectively losing their mind to each song is an event in and of itself. "Want You in My Room" is by far one of the highlights from not just her new record, but the year as well and watching it come to life onstage was nothing short of marvelous. The crowd was a magnetic dance party ready to give their all to this queen and at times dancing with strangers felt as normal as dancing amongst my friends."I Really Like You" was another gem that may be easy to brush off, but hearing it alive boosted the overall feelings and made the song feel like an utter sensation. She closed out the main set with "Party for One" which made the night feel like it was about to climax until she returned with "Real Love" to kick off the encore. Despite all of these peaks throughout the evening, everything truly culminated when she launched into "Cut to the Feeling" and all out pandemonium broke loose. Confetti filled the air as the entire venue seemed to jump in unison, collectively celebrating the magic that had filled the room and the state of pure euphoria that had captured the crowd. It was a moment of pure bliss, a single time where everything felt positive, and emotions could run high. She may not be gaining the attention and credit of many of her peers, but Carly Rae Jepsen is much more than a viral song turned meme and in fact one of the most genuine and engaging performers in the industry. Watching her bring a party to life and basking in the glow of her incredible songs is a truly inspirational sight and a brief escape to a world where music can actually make you believe that everything will be alright, and even if it's not, they'll be a hell of a party along the way.
01 "No Drug Like Me"
02 "E·MO·TION"
03 "Run Away With Me"
04 "Julien"
05 "Happy Not Knowing"
06 "Call Me Maybe"
07 "Now That I Found You"
08 "Gimmie Love"
09 "Feels Right"
10 "Fever"
11 "For Sure"
12 "Want You in My Room"
13 "Store"
14 "Too Much"
15 "When I Needed You"
16 "I Really Like You"
17 "Everything He Needs"
18 "Boy Problems"
19 "Party for One"
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20 "Real Love"
21 "Let's Get Lost"
22 "Cut to the Feeling"
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