“You’re beautiful, Manila! I love you!”
These were among the many words uttered by Liam Payne of One Direction (1D) that drew high-pitched screams during the first night of the popular boy band’s much-anticipated, sold-out Manila concert last March 21, 2015 at the Mall of Asia Concert Grounds.
The English-Irish boy band – composed of Payne, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Harry Styles, and Louis Tomlinson – rose to fame after their stint on Britain’s The X-Factor in 2010, and have since proven to be an unstoppable, chart-topping force in today’s pop music scene following the successes of their albums: Up All Night, Take Me Home, Midnight Memories, and Four. Along the way, they’ve amassed a multitude of fans worldwide (known as “Directioners”) who have continuously and faithfully supported the group on and outside social media. Last year, Manila was announced as one of the stops on their latest “On the Road Again” tour, exciting and fulfilling Filipino Directioners’ dreams of seeing the band perform in the flesh. As a Directioner who was “converted and confirmed” during one of the band’s This is Us film screenings, it was easy to anticipate and picture how both Manila shows were going to turn out – and the concert experience was everything I imagined it would be.
Before 1D’s performance, the 30,000 first-night attendees gathered at the Concert Grounds were treated to a 45-minute set from Malaysian DJ KC, whose mixes and re-mixes of popular radio hits left everyone psyched for the lads to take the stage. The void between acts was filled with a string of commercials and music videos, but sheer pandemonium erupted once the lights dimmed after a brief PSA clip on concert safety reminders (narrated by the lads themselves) and an introductory video were played. Liam, Niall, Harry, and Louis then took the stage and were warmly greeted by the Manila audience, who happily sang along to the band’s first slew of songs that included “Clouds,” “Steal My Girl,” “Little Black Dress,” “Where Do Broken Hearts Go?,” “Midnight Memories,” and “Kiss You.”
Despite the absence of one of their members (Zayn was missing in action after he signed off from the band’s Manila and Jakarta gigs due to stress), the four lads were able to deliver Zayn’s solos in every song, much to the delight of everyone. Each performance was received by screams and applause that would transpire after they sang their anthemic singles – “Stockholm Syndrome,” “Ready to Run,” “Don’t Forget Where You Belong,” “Better than Words,” and “Night Changes” – and the crowd was continuously amused by the lads’ cheery banter and brotherly onstage antics.
“This is easily one of my favorite gigs ever,” quipped Liam, who was the first among the lads to express their heartfelt messages of gratitude and admiration for their Filipino fans throughout their set. “We love the Philippines, we love you, and we love you again,” said Harry while Louis remarked that the night was “the hottest show we’ve ever done and one of the best gigs we’ve done so far.” Niall, who performed most of the gig with his guitar, added “thank you so much for patiently waiting for us, and now we’re here! If it wasn’t for you, we wouldn’t be doing shows like this in Manila.”
Making the night a notch more memorable were the Filipino Directioners who brought their A-game for the show. Apart from continuously chanting their support for the absent Zayn during various parts of the show, the fans also raised certain bond paper banners and fan signs while singing a number of songs. Clearly amazed at the show of support and pitch-perfect singing the crowd displayed with every song, the 1D lads never failed to engage the audience with every chance they could get – from asking us to collectively sing a ‘Happy Birthday’ to one of their beloved crew members to reading and reacting to some of the banners that fans held up for the night – and reciprocated the gestures with equally-endearing comments. “You sound beautiful, Manila” gushed Liam after hearing the powerful crowd responses during “Strong.” After letting us finish the last round of the chorus for “Little Things,” the lads collectively tagged Manila as “their loudest crowd ever.”
The slight drizzle that happened half-way into the set failed to dampen the spirits of the concertgoers, who remained unfazed and energetic as 1D continued belting out gems from their discography like “Alive,” “Diana,” and “Through the Dark,” and their spirits kicked into high gear as the lads effortlessly delivered their breakout hits – “One Thing” and “What Makes You Beautiful.” The euphoria continued as the band closed out their first set with “Girl Almighty” and “Story of My Life.”
After a quick outfit change, Liam, Harry, Niall, and Louis then returned to the stage and kicked off their encore set with “You & I.” Before singing “Little White Lies,” Harry took the time once again to thank the Filipino fans, a statement that was later echoed by Niall who said “[Manila] was incredible from start to finish. Thanks for waiting so patiently for us to come to the Philippines.” The lads then finally closed their show with everyone on their feet, singing and dancing to “Best Song Ever,” and fans were afterwards treated to a wonderful fireworks display that ensued shortly after the curtain call – perfectly capping off a gloriously musical night of unforgettable fun and frenzy that Directioners will be definitely and infinitely reliving until the next chance to see their favorite boy band (in full force this time) comes along. “We’ll be back soon,” the lads promised, and I haven’t stopped smiling since.
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The One Direction: On the Road Again Tour 2015 Manila leg was brought to us by Music Management International, Ovation Productions, and Futuretainment Inc.
