On March 24, Ari Abdul and Ella Boh lit up Le Trabendo in Paris. While they are both different solo artists, this wasn’t like a usual opener–main artist situation, as they are not just co-artists or friends, they are together in real life, sharing their relationship online for a while now. Ella opened for Ari on this run of the tour, and they also shared two songs during Ari’s main show, which makes this configuration really different from a regular concert.

Ari is an alternative pop singer-songwriter from Brooklyn, New York. She is still a relatively new artist, with her first single released in 2022. Since then, she has made two EPs that got monumental applause, and she already counts more than 5 million monthly listeners on Spotify alone. Ella Boh is also an American singer-songwriter who started around the same time as Ari. They met while collaborating in the studio and have been an iconic queer couple online for quite a while. Both of their styles merge perfectly, and I already knew this concert would feel like one big alternative dark pop bubble.

The show started early, with Ella arriving at 7:40 p.m. When the lights dimmed, fans started screaming. Everyone in the room was as excited for Ella as for Ari. She arrived on stage singing fan-favorite “babydoll.” She played some of her biggest hits, like “SERiAL KiLLER” and “a little bit.”

The stage at Le Trabendo is quite low, and there is no space between it and the fans, which makes fan-and-artist-interactions really easy. Ella held fans’ hands, took someone’s phone to record herself, received gifts, hyped everyone for Ari, and even played an unreleased song for the first time. After the exclusive song ended, she made sure the fans “fucked with it” before announcing it would be out on her next EP.

Ari also arrived early, at 8:30. The lights dimmed, and her concert intro resonated. She arrived in all black, with black eyeglasses, and opened with a killer trio: “Girls on the Internet,” “Dreams,” and “Bury You.”

Like Ella, the show was filled with fan interaction. Lots of people brought signs, two asking for tattoos, which Ari drew, and she laughed at how many pride flags were in the room, some with writing on them, and some with Ari and Ella’s faces on them. She signed things, got some gifts, and even wished “Happy Birthday” to someone.

Ari was accompanied on stage by Constance Antoinette, her guitarist, who also made fans scream with lots of guitar solos while sensually dancing on stage, and Nick LeWert on drums.

As all of her songs are upbeat, there wasn’t a single calmer moment. The fans were singing and dancing the whole show, as well as Ari, who gave a monumental, energetic performance. She surprised the French fans with two songs she said she “never plays live, but I am playing them for you:” “Stay” and “Who Were You With Last Night.” And she even covered “Toxic” by Britney Spears.

Ella came back for their two featured songs, “out of order” and “No Fair,” and fans went completely crazy when they started sensually dancing together and teasing each other. At the very end, when Ella was leaving the stage, she asked Ari for a kiss on the cheek, but they ended up kissing. Ari joked after, “That must have been the wind,” and asked how to say it in French.

Ari finished her set as expected with her most famous song, her first single, “BABYDOLL,” which made a really fast impact on her career. As fans waited for this moment, they gave their last drop of energy before Ari left the stage.

This show truly felt special. Even if Ari was headlining, it felt like Ella was beautifully mixed into the night, and the two made sense artistically and humanly together.

Follow Ari Abdul : TIKTOK | INSTAGRAM  | YOUTUBE | SPOTIFY | APPLE MUSIC | WEBSITE

Follow Ella Boh : TIKTOK | INSTAGRAM  | YOUTUBE | SPOTIFY | APPLE MUSIC | WEBSITE