Vera Blue O-week
Vera Blue performing at the UNSW Roundhouse for O-Week (Photo: Talya Jacobson)

Vera Blue kicks off uni year with a bang

One of the biggest acts out of Australia right now, Vera Blue (or, as some may know her, Celia Pavey), is taking the world by storm.

When you think about university O-week gigs, you think of open mic nights, karaoke events and toga parties. But those who flooded the UNSW Roundhouse during O-week 2020 discovered something a little different when Vera Blue took to the stage, presenting one of the biggest O-week gigs university life has seen.

With Vera recently playing the main stage at Falls Festival, playing at the infamous Red Rocks Amphitheatre, and taking #2 in Triple J’s Hottest 100 with the Flume track featuring her, Rushing Back, many students were shocked and delighted to hear she was playing a gig at UNSW’s Roundhouse last week.

The night started out with the stunning talents of Sycco: 18-year-old singer-songwriter and producer Sasha McLeod, with her captivating and soulful voice. She and her band had more fun on stage than I’ve seen most acts have, and, for a young artist, she presented endless charisma, confidence and charm, after one song laughing at how awesome this gig was.

The room filled up even more and the time came for 16-year-old Triple J Unearthed High winner George Alice to take the stage. Performing both originals and covers alongside her drummer and friend Daniel Steinert, she had the audience buzzing and dancing throughout the set. Her best-known song, Circles, was performed as her final number, and there wasn’t one person in the crowd who wasn’t singing.

By this time, the venue was packed and people were waiting with excitement buzzing through their fingers and toes: waiting for Vera to come out. In a stunning transparent floral bodysuit covered in a gorgeous sheer coat, there she was in all her glory, and the crowd went wild.

With touring band members Dave Jenkins Jr, Sammy Telford and Ross James, the group performed a captivating hour-long set, featuring some of Vera Blue’s greatest hits, including Regular Touch, All the Pretty Girls, and ‘Lady Powers’, in which she had everyone, regardless of gender, singing along.

Vera Blue has to be, without a doubt, one of the most confident, energetic and captivating performers to come out of Australia, and it’s no wonder she is doing so well. If this O-week gig didn’t get you ready for the uni year, nothing will!