The soulful Alina Baraz stepped onto stage at the Observatory in North Park on Oct. 24, closing the tour in support of her new EP, “The Color of You.”
The night began with her back-up dancer performing a complex solo as blue and pink lights flashed through the crowd, before the dancer was accompanied by synchronized dances and provocative lyrics.
Fans dressed in a similar fashion to Baraz, wearing hair extensions, artistic makeup, high heels and flashy clothes.
Baraz found fame after making it big on SoundCloud, where she released her first EP “Urban Flora.” The 24-year-old paired up with electronic musician Galimatias who helped her produce her beat driven music. The EP charted on the Billboard 200, and kicked her music career off to a huge start.
Since then, she’s garnered a large following of dedicated fans, performed at big festivals such as Coachella and Lollapalooza and released two singles with “Location” singer Khalid.
Her instrumental background drive her songs of love, lust and breakups. She disclosed to the audience about how she began making music.
“I remember first writing, I didn’t know if I could sing,” she said to the crowd, describing her humble musical beginnings. “I didn’t know if I could write. It’s crazy to think I get to travel all around the world.”
Management information studies junior Arad Yaron expressed her admiration for the singer’s originality.
“She has a really unique, fresh take on pop music,” Yaron said. “You can tell she put a lot of time and effort into her tour, and it really shows. She also sounds so good live.”
Early in the concert, the Ohio native played fan favorite “Make You Feel,” pushing the microphone out into the crowd during the chorus for them to echo back. Dramatic pauses in between songs were filled with light shows and live music solos.
Before performing the song “High,” Baraz expressed her writing process on the new EP saying, “High” was the first track she wrote for “The Color of You.”
“I had so many highs writing this record,” she said. “I had so many lows, and I know this project took a minute to come out, and I want to thank you for being patient with me.
Baraz closed off the night with “Electric,” a track made with crossover R&B singer Khalid, which gained recognition after being featured in the Netflix series “On My Block.”
As the song progressed, its electronic elements layered with her soothing voice, highlighting the artistic abilities Baraz is capable of.
While she may only have 2 EP’s out at the moment, it is apparent that her pop career has much more to flourish into, and “Electric” is the perfect preview of what is to come.
Her fans radiated with adoration at her every move. Baraz crosses paths with different genres and pairs that style with amatory lyrics. She gives off a sense of authenticity that divides her from other songwriters.
Her live voice reflects what initially got her noticed on SoundCloud and made her passion for making quality music incredibly obvious.
Baraz announced during the performance that a new full album is on its way and will be bigger and better than the rest.
