Lily Allen understands that her current live show is different from a traditional concert, but she also wants to make sure fans never leave feeling disappointed.
The British singer songwriter responded to a fan on X after the concertgoer shared criticism of one of her recent performances at The O2 Arena in London. In a post listing several complaints, the attendee wrote, “No support act. Arrived on stage at 9:10pm. All wrapped up by 10pm. Not one word to the audience. £86 to sit in the gods.”
Replying on Monday, June 29, Allen addressed each concern individually. “There is a support act,” she wrote. “The show has always been advertised as ‘Lily Allen performs West End Girl.'”
She also explained the slight delay, saying, “I was a few mins late as my tights were laddered and i had to change them.” Allen went on to explain why the performance runs for just over an hour. “The show is just over an hour as it’s just the album in its entirety. It’s my artistic choice not to talk to the audience, the fourth wall helps with the storytelling. Most people find it to be effective.”
“I don’t want anyone to feel ripped off,” she added. “Everyone on this tour is really working very hard to give people the best show we possibly can, and i’m extremely proud of it.”
The fan later clarified that he thought Allen’s performance was “brilliant,” but questioned whether the ticket price matched the running time, writing, “it can’t be right to charge that much for an hour, late on Sunday night.” He also noted that his biggest concerns were not the shorter set but the absence of a support act and any interaction with the audience.
“no support act and not even a ‘thank you so much for coming’ was a bit weird,” the fan added, prompting Allen to respond with a lighthearted remark: “I’d happily concede that I’m a bit weird, though.”
The exchange came shortly after Allen completed two sold out performances at The O2 Arena on June 27 and 28. She is now set to perform two shows in Dublin before returning to the London venue for one final performance.
The Lily Allen Performs West End Girl tour launched in March, four months after the release of West End Girl. The critically praised project, which explores the painful breakdown of a marriage, marked a significant comeback for Allen and became her first album to reach the Billboard 200 in seven years, peaking at No. 93.
See Allen’s posts below.
