Kendrick Lamar and SZA live in London: a sometimes jarring, often unmissable clash of worlds

Kendrick Lamar and SZA’s Grand National tour is a strange beast. It should feel like a victory lap for the Compton king after his flawless sixth album ‘GNX’ – and a menacing win in his beef with Drake – cemented his status as the most popular rapper around. His musical sister, too, is riding high – she’s made her acting debut in the buddy comedy One Of Them Days and delivered her jam-packed ‘Lana’, a deluxe extension of her acclaimed ‘SOS’ album.

• READ MORE: SZA – ‘SOS Deluxe: Lana’ review: chasing tranquility amid the chaos of love, life and fame

The format of the show, though, means things take on a different feel. It’s simultaneously brutal and delicate, constantly switching between the two artists and splitting the setlist into a jagged collage. One minute, you’re getting scorched by Lamar’s firestorm – hot venom flying through the air as he performs with his chest out. The next, you’re floating in SZA’s dreamy garden. The shifts are so abrupt, it’s full-on sonic whiplash – and this relentless toggling robs both artists of truly showcasing their brilliance and, instead, jolts us repeatedly between two very different universes.

Lamar immediately builds the energy to electric levels, bringing raw power to his first act. ‘Wacced Out Murals’ hits like acid spit, ‘Squabble Up’ snarls, and ‘King Kunta’ swaggers in defiant funk. Even a half-played ‘TV Off’ has the crowd delirious. SZA enters, rising through the floor in her own leafy Buick, giving a first glimpse of her and K.Dot’s sibling chemistry on ‘30 For 30’, but some of their connection is lost due to the nature of the 62,000-capacity stadium. Vocals echo and bass wobbles, dissipating through the open roof, sometimes muffling the moments that deserved to land hardest.

When SZA takes over for Act II, she does so with a lush, kaleidoscopic set full of ‘CTRL’ nostalgia. ‘Love Galore’, ‘Broken Clocks’, and ‘The Weekend’ all are sprinkled with a soft, smoky ache as she and her dancers float with effortless grace. But these beautiful moments are brief cinematic respites for the rage core that soon bubbles up when she hands the baton back to Lamar.

Back in the spotlight, the rapper unleashes his devastating arsenal of floor-shaking hits for the third and fifth acts. He’s petty, performing his initial Drake diss ‘Euphoria’ in full, before turning to crowd favourites ‘Humble’ and ‘Family Ties’ (minus cousin Baby Keem). Shockwaves ripple through the arena, energy building like a pressure cooker until it explodes. Mosh pits erupt and frenzied bodies collide in joyous chaos, every slam feeling like a communal victory.

It’s sad that SZA’s subsequent acts then drop the pace dramatically, ushering us back into her world of creepy crawlies as she goes on a journey of metamorphosis. The stadium witnesses her turn into a beautiful butterfly – if the screen doesn’t obstruct your view, at least. The fiery momentum of Lamar’s segments might come undone in this serene space, but SZA offers a chance to breathe, even if it does feel disorienting at times.

It’s a given that ‘Not Like Us’ is the apex of the night’s energy. As soon as the beat drops, the whole stadium screams every iconic line with a roar fit for a winning Championship goal. The encore, though, provides the true highlight of the night. After the crowd thins, Lamar and SZA reappear together – no fireworks, no pyrotechnics; just two voices, raw and vulnerable.

Basked in a hazy white glow, they deliver versions of ‘Luther’ and ‘Gloria’ with breathtaking tenderness. It’s a rare moment of collective softness after a sprawling, disjointed spectacle – proof of what the show could have been if the music had been allowed to breathe, to speak for itself. In London tonight, two stars collide, but even greatness can struggle to find the perfect balance.

Kendrick Lamar and SZA played:

Act I: Kendrick Lamar
‘Wacced Out Murals’
‘Squabble Up’
‘King Kunta’
‘ELEMENT.’
‘TV Off’

Act II: SZA
‘30 for 30’
‘What Do I Do’
‘Love Galore’
‘Broken Clocks’
‘The Weekend’

Act III: Kendrick Lamar
‘Euphoria’
‘Hey Now’
‘Reincarnated’
‘Humble.’
‘Backseat Freestyle’
‘Family Ties’
‘Swimming Pools’
‘m.A.A.d city’
‘Alright’
‘Man at the Garden’

Act IV: SZA
‘Scorsese Baby Daddy’
‘F2F’
‘Garden’
‘Kitchen’
‘Blind’
‘Consideration’
‘Low’

Act V: Kendrick Lamar & SZA
‘Doves in the Wind’
‘All the Stars’
‘LOVE.’

Act VI: Kendrick Lamar
‘Dodger Blue’
‘Peekaboo’
‘Like That’
‘DNA.’
‘Good Credit’
‘Count Me Out’ / ‘Bitch Don’t Kill My Vibe’
‘Money Trees’
‘Poetic Justice’

Act VII: SZA
‘I Hate U’
‘Shirt’
‘Kill Bill’
‘Snooze’
‘Crybaby’
‘Nobody Gets Me’
‘Good Days’
‘Rich Baby Daddy’
‘BMF’
‘Kiss Me More’

Act VIII: Kendrick Lamar
‘N95’
‘TV Off’
‘Not Like Us’

Act IX: Kendrick Lamar & SZA (Encore)
‘Luther’
‘Gloria’

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