Coco & Clair Clair, the Atlanta-based duo composed of Taylor Nave and Claire Toothill, recently gave their very first concert in Belgium, marking only their third performance on the old continent. The two musicians attracted a crowd of enthusiastic fans to the Botanique, which was sold out for the occasion.
The opening act was Raven Artson, whose shows usually consist of audiovisual performances. However, for this occasion, the audience was treated to a minimalist performance consisting of a vocal accompanied by a prerecorded soundtrack. Although the first moments were timid, with Artson singing with closed eyes, the second part of the concert was much better, with more interaction between the artist and the spectators. For the finale, Raven Artson took off the top of his clothes, creating an electrifying atmosphere in the room with a lively music that will finally captivate the public!
It is a little after 9 p.m. when the lights of the Rotonde go out to make way for the stars of the evening! The two young women make their entrance and begin their performance with “Be With U,” immediately causing a stir among the audience. The fans are numerous and make their presence known to the Americans by singing the lyrics of the song in unison. They quickly follow up with “Bad Lil Vibe” and “TBFT,” and what stands out the most in this beginning of the set is that the duo’s songs sound even better live than recorded in the studio. The chemistry between the two young women is remarkable on stage, their differences giving their duo a special charm appreciated by their fans. On the one hand, Coco is very outgoing and not afraid to interact with her fans, while on the other hand, Clair Clair is more reserved and stays a little more in the background on stage. These personality traits are also reflected in their singing styles, with a powerful flow for Taylor Nave and a more melodic and soft singing style for Claire Toothill. This is already noticeable in the studio, but it makes even more sense live.
Coco & Clair Clair’s fanbase is mainly made up of young people from the Instagram and TikTok generation, and as on social media, interaction with their audience is very important to the two American artists, and almost all of their songs are interspersed with dialogues with their fans. For example, they respond to crowd requests by adding songs to the setlist, such as when fans ask for “Water” and they start humming it before returning to the planned list for the evening. They also exchange with their audience on various subjects, such as when they defend Britney Spears before singing “U + Me,” or when Clair Clair answers a fan’s phone call to make a vidéo call from the stage. They seem to really enjoy every moment spent on stage interacting with their fans, for the greatest pleasure of the audience.
The hits naturally follow one another and the show unfortunately ends too quickly. After only forty minutes, Coco & Clair Clair leave the stage, clearly leaving their audience wanting more. With two EPs and a full album, the duo could have easily extended the set by twenty minutes to reach an hour-long show, which would have delighted many in the room. But for today, we’ll have to settle for that, hoping that at their next visit, the show will be extended by a few extra minutes.
Setlist : Be With, U Bad, Lil Vibe, TBTF, Crushcrushcrush, Wishy Washy, Love Me, U + Me, Pretty, The Hills, Cherub, Pop Star, Sims 2
In conclusion, although the show was short-lived, Coco & Clair Clair managed to offer a performance that reflects their style: simple, warm, and effective! Their blend of dream pop and hip hop has charmed us, and we hope to see them back soon, perhaps even at a festival this summer.