Brooke Candy
22nd February 2019
Whammy! Bar, Auckland, New Zealand.
Review & Photography by Sarah Kidd.
The bitch is back.
Despite her rather mixed feelings about returning to New Zealand following an altercation at Auckland’s Family bar during her DJ set last December, Brooke Candy swept back into Auckland last night to once again perform at Whammy Bar.
Surrounded by her usual entourage who littered the stage like an army of multi-coloured discarded haute couture models, Candy faced down yet another sweltering mass of bodies who spilled over the lip of the stage, hundreds of eyes watching her every move, silently begging for recognition from the queen herself. Dressed in her full length white satin mindfuck dress, Candy looked like a disciple at Marilyn Manson’s Eat Me, Drink Me altar, her bright red heart shaped glasses absolutely popping against the heavy white face paint emblazoned with the word ‘Crazy’ in bold lettering across her forehead.
Once again from within the leather walls of her booth, DJ EMWA dropped the backing tracks, changing the order and pausing at Candy’s every demand. Early hits such as ‘Das Me’, ‘Opulence’ and ‘Pussy Make the Rules’ just as popular as last time; Candy once again emphatically stating that women always make the rules, the power of the pussy one that cannot be denied in her world.
Even though she played up to the audience, often dancing within millimetres of their faces and ensuring that she worked every inch of the stage that Whammy had to offer, the LA native seemed agitated, her demeanour that of a caged tigress. Swilling back glasses of red wine, she asked the audience who had a joint as it was better that she was sedated right now. While no fan wants to see their favourite artist unhappy, it has to be said that her tension only added to the performance, her skin almost crackling with static as she bristled against an unseen foe. Despite whatever underlying battle she was fighting, Candy still professed her love for those in attendance thanking them for making her feel both welcomed and wanted.
Ensuring that energy levels stayed high, Candy smashed out her hits in a similar set composition as her last show, the erotic ‘Pop Rock’ working up the crowd as she grinded her hips to the rhythm while the pounding beat of ‘Don’t Touch My Hair Hoe’ had the entire audience chanting the chorus line with extra sass shooting from the ends of their pointed fingers.
While choosing to keep her attire on this time around, Candy still took it to the next level, pouring water over herself until her satin dress clung to her tattooed form. This isn’t a gimmick, this is Candy. Her sexuality and self-appreciation of her own body something she is revered for by her fans, Candy reminding everyone that her shows are a ‘safe space’ where people can look, dress and be who they truly are without fear, no matter what their size, shape or form. However the important rule of consent was also demonstrated as a fan begged Candy to caress her naked breasts, the openly pansexual artist happy to do so but only after asking the fan first if she consented to the act, Candy then requesting her to vocalise just what act she was consenting to.
Following a particularly visceral version of ‘I Wanna Fuck Right Now’ where several fans began to edge their way onto the stage, taking up the spaces along the sides, Candy changed it up, performing the Charli XCX track ‘I Got It’ which she herself features on before smashing out her 2017 hit ‘Volcano’ whose spectacular visual feast of a music video features the kingpin himself of Hustler magazine Larry Flynt. With the room drenched in sweat and Candy now carrying out her own personal tango with red wine and poppers – the latter of which she had commandeered from an audience member – it was time for one last number; ‘Ecstasy Triple X’ giving everyone present a little taste of what’s to come from her long-awaited debut album.
One thing’s for certain, Brooke Candy still has a lot to say, and she isn’t going anywhere until she’s said it. So, listen up bitches.
Were you there at Whammy! Bar for this Electro Pop Hip-Hop gig? Or have you seen Brooke Candy perform live somewhere else before? Tell us about it in the comments below!
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