By Christina Pan
Your girl knows how to put on a show. I couldn’t take my eyes off Renée Rapp the entire time. Her “Bite Me” tour is named after her “biting” style of lyrics—even when she’s singing about a softer subject, there’s still a sharp quality to her music, present in her lyrics, delivery, and overall aura. Playing to a full crowd spread across seated and lawn sections at Merriweather Post Pavilion, Rapp brought the energy and the intensity with excellent production quality.
Opening Act: Syd
Syd, R&B singer and former The Internet frontwoman, opened the show with some of her fan-favorites and her smooth, enchanting R&B voice. Syd also sang several new songs devoted to her wife, Ariana Simone, whom she later introduced on stage. Syd’s stage presence was undeniable: there was only bass and piano backing, and Syd herself was dressed simply in a crew hoodie. There was no elaborate dance crew or flashy lights present for Syd, but she kept the audience captivated by how the music just flowed with her body.
Main Performance
After a quick intermission, Rapp came onto the stage with red lighting flowing across it. The production of the concert, from the lighting to the dance choreography, was incredible. She started the show floating on top of a high-raised platform, immediately showing off her vocal prowess and dance moves. She belted intense song after intense song, slyly teasing the audience with all sorts of moves and quips. The bass beat was strong enough that you could feel it through the entire massive amphitheater.
Eventually, Rapp transitioned to softer songs, where she sat on top of a piano, reminiscing about her early childhood days when she first discovered songwriting. Back then, it would just be her and the piano, singing melodies into the night. This effect was mesmerizing: there was a quiet intensity even throughout the more mellow songs, fitting for “Bite Me”. The energy of the crowd was undeniably fervent—anything Rapp asked the crowd to do, whether hoot or holler or wave their arms or light up the crowd, they did.
Rapp also showed candor and vulnerability when discussing her songs, especially one inspired by her “first real heartbreak.” She did not shy away from honestly describing how she felt about that person, and how she felt such love and, at the end of it, a deep feeling of irreconciliation, a betrayal of trust. Her music, as a whole, is pop-driven but comes from a more personal than performative side.
Atmosphere and Logistics
Concertgoers were all dressed up fashionably, from oversized flannels to miniskirts to quippy shirts with “Bite Me” or the like fashioned onto them (a small word of warning if you’re parking at Merriweather Post: it takes forever to park, and forever to get down from the top floors).
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