REVIEW: Jalen Ngonda dazzles Newcastle audience on first leg of UK tour

CREDIT: Lucas Ward

The soulful Jalen Ngonda kicked off his UK tour at the O2 City Hall in Newcastle, in a year that has already seen him release a hit single, earn recognition from Rolling Stone and perform at Glastonbury.  

The night’s support act came in the form of Ava Joe, a BRIT School alum whose jazz pop style initially appeared to be a possible mismatch with the audience. Nonetheless, she commanded the stage as she swayed through some masterful vocals on her first visit to Newcastle. Performing songs from her debut LP Try Me, as well as a soulful cover of The Rolling Stones’ Paint It, Black and a look at her new single Big Beautiful Mess with ease, it didn’t take long for the audience to get on board with her Amy Winehouse influenced performance. 

Jalen walked out after his band to applause from the audience before launching straight into Doctrine of Love, one of three unreleased songs that were debuted in Newcastle, the highlight of which being Mr. Train Conductor, a superb homage to classic doo-wop rhythm and blues music.

After performing his smash hit Anyone in Love, a song he has performed previously on shows such as The Graham Norton Show and Later… with Jools Holland, Jalen spoke to the crowd to warn them that ‘we are only just pulling out of the driveway’ – and how right he was. The next 70 minutes flew by as he took his audience on a ride through his modern soul discography, even inviting the crowd to ‘marinade in the groove’ as he introduced a call-and-response section midway through Give Me Another Day.

He showcased his mixture of talents, switching between electric guitar and keyboard throughout the show, providing a spellbinding freestyle jazz musical interlude on the keys during Come Around and Love Me, the title track from his 2023 debut album. Jalen continued to play songs from this album, as well as debuting another forthcoming single before closing his set with Illusions, a Motown inspired hit that is perfectly complimented by his Marvin Gaye level vocals.

The audience weren’t letting him go without an encore, and after repeated clapping and stamping, Jalen re-emerged and stunned with an acoustic cover of Dusty Springfield’s The Look of Love on the keyboard and then an equally enchanting version of Baby What You Want Me To Do on guitar. The band then joined Jalen again for one final song, finishing the show with If You Don’t Want My Love, encouraging the audience to get up on their feet and dance along to cap off a wonderful night of music.

This signals the start of Jalen Ngonda’s biggest UK tour to date, and if this is what audiences across the country have to look forward to then he is sure to be a smash hit. His striking falsetto never fails to amaze and his variety of performance ensures audiences never tire of watching and hearing him. A leading voice in the world of modern soul, revitalising and introducing a whole new generation to the genre made famous by his heroes The Temptations and Martha and the Vandellas. Jalen Ngonda is a true star, whose career trajectory is only on an upward curve.

SETLIST:

Doctrine of Love – first performance

That’s All I Wanted From You

Don’t You Remember

Anyone in Love

Here To Stay

Give Me Another Day

Come Around and Love Me

Mr. Train Conductor – first performance

Lost

I Need You

Just As Long As We’re Together

So Glad I Found You 

Burning Temptation – first performance

Illusions

(ENCORE)

The Look of Love – Dusty Springfield cover

Baby What You Want Me To Do – Jimmy Reed cover

If You Don’t Want My Love