Written by Chloe Hayler
The 24-year-old singer-songwriter proved she is more than a one-hit wonder when she stopped off at Pryzm, Kingston on her Acoustic Record Store tour, to celebrate the release of her soulfully honest debut album Early Twenties. Just two years ago, Cat Burns was an emerging artist when her song Go spent seventeen weeks in the Official Singles Chart, peaking at number two. The viral hit went double platinum and led to three BRIT Award nominations, including Song of The Year, Best Pop/R&B and Rising Star. After a week of intimately performing tracks from her new album, the south Londoner is now set for her first headline UK and European tour in October later this year.
The raw openness and relatability of Burns’ lyrics is amplified by the stripped back, minimalistic stage on which she performs. Seated on a tall wooden chair with just her microphone and her guitarist Eilidh Mckellar beside her, the artist delivers heartfelt renditions of her new tracks, as well as the adored fan favourites. The soft purple lighting compliments the comfortable intimacy of Burns’ performance and helps to create the feeling of listening to a close friend confess their deepest emotions.
The pop-indie infused set list is carefully curated to mimic Burn’s coming of age journey in which vulnerability and navigating love are familiar themes. There is a considered blend of emotionally intense songs like, False Hope and End Game, and those that are danceable, such as Ghosting. Burns does well to maintain this balance and ensure steady flow until the end with her chatty interludes that introduce each number. She tells quick, witty stories of how each song came to be, noting that she often “capitalises” on the misfortunate experiences of her friends and writes lyrics that convey her innermost thoughts. It is through these conversations that fans see Burns most at ease and the love she has for her music ripples round the room.
Although there is little movement from Burns throughout her fifty-minute set, her audience remains entirely transfixed, resonating with every word and touched by every note. When it comes to Happier Without You, hardly anyone has their phone out filming. There is a moment of solidarity amongst her predominately Gen Z audience, a shared moment of realisation and acceptance of heartbreak.
The audience’s engagement is a moving aspect of the night for Burns, who expresses her gratitude to all those who know the lyrics and sing along with her. She reveals that she expects people will only know her breakthrough tune Go, but the crowd disproves this, and confidently belts the chorus’ of People Pleaser and Alone. They scream even louder when Burns asks for song requests in the final ten minutes. The first being Free, which has the room tapping their feet and swaying to the joyous single. And as she leaves the stage, she uplifts her filled venue with the delicate melodies of Met Someone.
Whilst Burns declares on the night she is “a recovering people pleaser”, she has no problem pleasing the crowd with her strong vocals and reassuring her generation that hope can be found in the most challenging situations, “we all just need to live more and love more”.
Written by Chloe Hayler, edited and published by Lottie Macro, photography by Chloe Hayler