Stromae is Taking Over the Music World

Words & photos by Sarthak Panda / See full gallery from this night here

December 6th, 2022 — After back-to-back sold out shows in Madison Square Garden, Stromae’s next stop was at the Agganis Arena in Boston. Which was sold-out too, of course.

The light rain couldn’t stop my excitement as I held my camera bag and walked into the arena. Thousands of fans filled the space and came alive with opening act, Sho Madjozi who made an electrifying entrance.

Full of color, a skip in her step, and a warm energy in her smile, she quickly had the crowd jumping to her raps and afrobeats representative of her South African roots. Her look was colorful and it was like watching a party unfold with her and her two dancers tearing up the stage as Sho Madjozi prompted the crowd with an exchange of phrases in her native tongue to repeat as she commanded the energy.

After her first song, she introduced herself, catching her breath, and spoke about the importance of following your dream no matter where in the world you’re from. Being unapologetically proud of her roots, she brought her Tsonga culture in her lyrics, clothes, hair, and dance, showing that international artists have made their mark globally and her and Stromae are no different.

With an explosive start, the crowd was excited to continue to the international energy with the Belgian artist’s start soon. In this time, I spoke to the fans who waited hours to ensure they got to the front row. We spoke about how we each got introduced to Stromae with many sharing touching stories of how he inspired them. One fan clutching a vinyl of Multitude, Stromae’s latest album, spoke to me about how he admired the artist’s lyricism and subject matter that is all powered by powerful production and passionate music videos and dancing. Another fan spoke to me about how he was inspired from Stromae to start his own fashion line, a subject that Stromae himself is involved in. With this crowd, it was only time before they would experience a performance unlike any other.

And at 9:00pm on the dot, the arena went dark as the crowd roared.

White light filled the room as two large monitors displayed a 3D animation of a sci-fi location. Before we knew it, it was Stromae as an animated figure and his band started to hit the drums, strum the guitars, run their hands through the keys, and slap the base. His song, “Invaincu” echoed through the space with the rising choirs and right on cue. He had arrived.

The Belgian sensation came in, in his white frilly shirt with a pink bow, rapping the verse of the track while fans jumped on beat. As the hook echoed through again, the white light shone on the crowd as they shouted with excitement and reached out with Stromae observing the fully packed arena.

Without a pause, organs played as he started “Fils de Joie”, an iconic track on his album accompanied with a powerful music video where Stromae sang on a podium with microphones around him. He addressed the crowd as he if he was a politician, mirroring his creative direction in the respective music video of the song on stage. 

The song tackles a heavy subject matter of Stromae acting as the leader of a fictional country where he holds a state funeral for a deceased sex worker and jumps from 3 different perspectives. But as someone who has little French knowledge and a stadium of over 7,000 people with majority being the same, it didn’t matter. Because his delivery,  tone, and expressiveness allows you to feel the depth of his lyrics. And Stromae is expressive in every way.

The show highlighted his iconic facial expressions and expressive dancing which presented itself in most of his songs. Watching him dance on stage was a real treat. He brought a grand sense of motion, playfulness, and a creativity that captured the essence of his genre-bending music.

Sometimes it was singing, sometimes rapping. Sometimes it was cinematic,  sometimes it was like you were in a club. And most times, it was a fusion of everything that makes it difficult to define what kind of music Stromae makes besides one that is strangely universal and full of depth.

In between the music, Stromae spoke to the crowd about his journey coming from the poor neighborhoods of Belgium and his excitement to be on tour in the US. He spoke warmly about his wife and brother, both of whom are his creative directors and had a hand in the wonderful design of his tour.

The set production was impressive with 6 massive screens that would display different scenes, abstract designs, and 3D animations that would match each song. A standout moment was when Storme’s robot puppy came to greet the crowd. Everything from the presentation, to the lighting, to these moments gave an aura that there was something truly rich and original about this performance. 

He sang fan-favorites like “Tous les Mêmes”, “Papaoutai”, and “Formidable”, each sporting his ranged singing and beats that went from grand choirs to electric synth-fueled club bangers. He went along to perform tracks from his new album like “Mon Amour”, a song dedicated to his 4-year old son, and “Santé”, an anthem of celebration for those who have jobs and responsibilities that are widely ignored by the general public.

A standout moment was one the large monitors had an AI-like voice give instructions to the crowd of thousands of dance steps for his song “Mauvaise Journey” and me being on the stands, it was a unique sight to see the crowds move together even when standing side by side in the general admission pit. 

As Stromae finished his last track and wished everyone good night, the Boston crowd applauded — and only continued to applaud even with the dim lights. And once again, the monitors came up and white light filled the room. A 3D animation came up, displaying a jungle with a first-person walk deeper where we see an animated Stromae putting in a flash drive and playing with a MIDI keyboard. He played a few notes and the crowd knew exactly where this was going. It was the encore. And what better way to finish it than with Stromae’s 2009 explosive world-wide sensation, “Alors on Danse?” Stromae and his band came out as he yelled if Boston is ready for the club with the fans vocally ready for one final party.

Stromae’s vocals poured in with a verse that teased a chorus that was coming any moment. And there was the pause and then as soon as “Alors on Dance” was sang, the crowd jumped up and down as they yelled the words themselves. The lights and energy transformed the arena into a nightclub with thousands dancing, fans who could be seen on the shoulders of others with their hands up, and Stromae bringing the vibrations up even higher.

And then as soon as the track finished, Stromae brought it back, but this time with the reverbed version that went viral on TikTok in 2021. Stromae moved his arms in and out to match the steps from the viral TikTok trend with the crowd following in unison. After the verses, he gave a warm introduction and thank you to the band and crew and brought the show to a conclusive end — but the crowd only continued to roar.

Stromae approached the mic again saying: “Guys, that’s it! The means the show is over. You can go now.” But the crowd was not ready to leave even after the encore and Stromae and the band knew it. They looked at each other, smiling, and nodding and Stromae approached the mic again. “Ok so we have something but everyone has to be very quiet. We need silence”. And in that moment from an explosive club banger, the entire arena was silent with only a single spotlight on the stage as Stromae and his 4 bandmates started to do an a cappella version of “Mon Amour”. 

It was unique, unexpected, and unforgettable — all things that tied back to who Stromae is as an artist. After the last note, the previously silent crowd erupted in applause and cheer as Stromae and the band bowed before waving goodnight.

This performance represented the creativity and passion of an artist with the powerful singing, the expressive dancing, the wide-spread genres of the catalogue, and encores that excite, and a special end that will surprise.

Stromae has taken over the world on this tour and you’ll fully see why at these shows!