My Big Night Out ft. Ed Sheeran
June 16, 2014
Hollywood Bowl- Los Angeles, CA
Earlier this week, on Monday, June 16, 2014, Los Angeles pop fans rallied for the My Big Night Out show presented by 104.3 MYfm and featured Ed Sheeran. Also sharing the bill with the flame-haired, singer/songwriter/beatboxer, Sheeran, was pop sensation, Demi Lovato; Nico & Vinz who performed their first ever US show that night; R&B/folk singer, Colbie Caillat and singer/songwriter, Andy Grammer.
Just after 8:25, Colbie Caillat was finishing her set with one of her most popular songs, Bubbly with the help of the ever so willing audience singing along. As she left the stage, the whole stage rotated 350 degrees with Nico & Vinz’s set up. The singing, dancing duo came on stage with their band members and performed a whopping 1 song set which was Am I Wrong. It was strange that these guys would come all the way from Norway to perform just 1 hit song. Nonetheless, the executed it well and had the crowd singing and dancing along.
Following their song, Demi Lovato came out on stage with her band and stole the show, being the most energetic performer of the night. She opened her set up with her recent hit, Heart Attack and continued with Remember December. In between her vocals, Lovato would reach out into the crowd and hold her fans’ [Lovatics] hands and interact with her band members by singing back to back with her guitarist as he performed and head-banging like she was at a rock show.
Mid set, she slowed down and mentioned how it was just Father’s Day the day before and how since last year, her dad has become her new guardian angle. She continued by dedicating Nightingale to her step-dad, almost breaking down in tears mid-song. The raw emotion was touching and had everyone in the bowl, waving their phones left and right as if they were lighters. She performed a few more songs and then took a couple minutes to tell the crowd about her story- apologizing beforehand for the buzzkill. She spoke passionately about mental illness, eating disorders and self-harm, telling everyone that she has been through it all and substance abuse as well and that anyone struggling through it can get help and overcome it. Appropriately following her strong message was Warrior. She performed several more songs and then left the stage before coming back for an encore of Skyscraper and Give Your Heart a Break, perfectly ending her set. It was enjoyable to see Lovato perform fan favorites, jump around and give people a show but also slow it down and talk about serious issues that are occurring with today’s youth and adults alike; she is one teen pop-star that kids should be looking up to, unlike people like Miley Cyrus or Justin Bieber. 
A decent amount of the audience left after Lovato’s set, being that many of them were younger children and some of the other people were just plain cold, sitting at the Hollywood Bowl at 9:50pm. Those who did stay got to witness a unique performance; one man with one guitar- no props, no crazy light effects, just the man himself- Ed Sheeran. It was almost 10:00pm as Sheeran took his spot on center stage, in front of thousands of screaming fans. He went straight into You Need Me, I Don’t Need You a song which truly highlights him as an artist; it showcased his guitar playing skills, singing skills, and even reggae/rapping. One would assume it’s an odd combination but oh did it work so perfectly. He continued his short 10 song set with Lego House; Don’t; a cover of Be My Husband by Nina Simone; the fan favorite, The A Team and more. As his set neared an end, those who left early to beat traffic missed a good one- Demi Lovato came back on stage and performed Give me Love with Sheeran. They alternated between vocals and it flowed so well, you would think that they wrote the song together. The fans absolutely loved the song and didn’t want it to end. Sheeran ended his set and the night with Sing.
All in all, being a Monday night, this show did pretty well, and each of the artists performing were able to deliver to the adoring fans and everyone heard something that they enjoyed. We can’t wait to see what next year has to offer!
Review by: Nicole Lemberg
Ed Sheeran
Nixo & Vinz
