Falling for Sarah Kang’s ‘Hopeless Romantic Tour’
Photo Cr: Ethan Buriel
Starting the new year off strong, the NYC-based singer-songwriter Sarah Kang held a stellar performance at the Moroccan Lounge in Los Angeles. This R&B and jazz artist has been pursuing music full-time since 2017, touching on themes of love, appreciation, and nostalgia.
With a crowd of fans eagerly waiting for the show to start, one strum of the guitar accompanied by the immediate cheers of the audience signaled the beginning of what promised to be an unforgettable evening.
Filipino-American R&B/pop artist Nieman opened the show with his silky smooth vocals. His performance was composed of songs with sweet and romantic lyrics, even highlighting that his song, “Outer Space,” was dedicated to his wife.
Nieman’s impressive ability to blend other songs into his own such as Victoria Monét’s “On my Mama” and Fall Out Boy’s “Sugar, We’re Goin Down” kept the crowd energetic. Nieman’s set concluded with “100” and finished with thunderous applause from the audience. Leaving the stage with a heartfelt thanks, Nieman perfectly warmed up the crowd for the next part of the show.
Photo Cr: Ethan Buriel
The lights flashed brighter as Sarah quickly made her way to the mic. The crowd burst into a huge roar as she faced the audience with a glowing smile. Kicking off her set with “Pluto,” the crowd swayed and softly sang along with her calming voice.
As she transitioned to the chorus of the song, Sarah’s voice visibly impacted the audience. Her mesmerizing tones echoed throughout the room and her emotional performance engaged the audience. The sincerity of her lyrics was powerful, exemplifying her talent as an artist in the music industry.
Photo Cr: Ethan Buriel
Throughout the show, Sarah made comedic transitions into her songs. As soon as she mentioned that her next song was about being lactose intolerant, the crowd burst into laughter and then shouted, “We love cheeze!”
Once again, her soulful voice reached the hearts of everyone in the audience, but heads began to turn as her husband, Andrew Kang, made his appearance. The two continued to sing harmoniously, demonstrating their admirable love for each other.
The couple engaged the audience by asking, “Who here is lactose intolerant?” As many hands shot up into the air, Sarah and Andrew started throwing cheese into the audience, adding to the fun and comedic atmosphere the song had already set.
The tone of the show later shifted as Sarah had a moment with her audience. Sarah shared that she grew up feeling innocent and naive, but as she grew older she felt like some of those dreams were crushed by reality.
Sarah recognized her music as a powerful medium in which she could tell others that they weren’t alone in facing these challenges and that together, they can overcome them. Finding beauty in such adversities, Sarah then introduced songs from her latest album Hopeless Romantic.
As her performance continued to amaze the audience, Sarah thanked everyone for their support on her first-ever tour. Following this, Sarah put her feelings about the many changes in her life into the next string of songs.
With a starstruck audience, Sarah announced the last song of the night and her most popular song, “Summer is for Falling in Love.” Instantly, the venue brimmed with excitement as everyone prepared themselves for the grand finale. The ending of the song was met with whistles and loud cheers as Sarah bowed and left the dimmed stage.
“One more song! One more song!”, the crowd shouted repeatedly. With enough chanting, Sarah returned to perfectly round off her performance. To end it, Sarah brought up the romantic soul and hip-hop artist, Michael Carreon, to sing their latest single, “summer after senior year.”
Their voices blended seamlessly, creating a captivating duet that perfectly captured the essence of the song's nostalgic and romantic themes. The performance was a fitting and unforgettable ending to an evening of powerful music, leaving the audience with contentment and satisfaction.
Photo Cr: Ethan Buriel