Live Review: Demi Lovato, Masketta Fall

The young and the young at heart gathered at Sydney’s Hordern Pavilion last night to watch the poster girl for mental health and empowerment, Demi Lovato, Let It Go.

Melbourne group, Masketta Fall, opened the show as thousands lined waiting to get in. The boys delivered a high-energy set of covers and originals that had the crowd jumping and screaming – this may or may not have been because many of them were pre-teens and this was probably their first concert. A rendition of Wheatus’ Teenage Dirtbag and Masketta Fall’s new single, Summertime Girls were the highlights.

Lovato entered the stage, right on schedule, to sounds of hysteria from the crowd. As spotlights lit the stage, she launched straight into a rendition of Really Don’t Care, with a big screen playing the video clip behind her.

Despite suffering from jetlag, Lovato’s fatigue didn’t show through in her performance, which was on point from start to finish. She delivered powerful vocals, along with powerful messages of hope. The former Barney star struggled with depression and suicidal thoughts as a child, and now uses her music to raise awareness for mental health.

“Sometimes I get tired of being the poster child for recovery,” she admitted. “Life is way too short to be taken too seriously. I’m no longer thinking about the past, I’m thinking about the future that I’m living with you guys.”

The crowd went wild at this, with audience members screaming, “You are perfect” and “We love you Demi”, as she launched into a rendition of Warrior, with a clip of a trip she took to Africa playing on the big screen.

Heart Attack and Let It Go were crowd pleasers, but her encore of Neon Lights stole the show, before everyone filtered out to meet with the crowd of awaiting parents at the gates.