An out of this world show

It’s always felt as though Kylie Minogue’s impact on popular culture is wildly underestimated.

I think back to 2017, when Kylie Jenner attempted to trademark her first name for use on her beauty brand, as though no other Kylie had ever been as famous before. Or just last year when, despite the mammoth viral success of her hypnotically catchy single “Padam Padam”, fans had to campaign just to get it played on the radio.

There are few potential reasons why. Ageism now, for sure, though Kylie has only just turned 56. If it were up to Liz Truss, she’d be on stage for another 25 years. Yet it’s also because of who Kylie is: she has always just seemed very nice, down to earth, and dare we say it, normal.

For women pop stars, there appears to be an expectation that in order to be considered legends, they must be untouchable, or controversial, or a pariah, or a social vanguard. Kylie is simply incredibly good at making pop music, and has been for nearly 40 years.

Never has that knack been so evident than at Kylie’s BST Hyde Park show on Saturday (13 July).

From the moment she launches onto the stage in a Padam-red vinyl catsuit, belting out 2023’s carnal, propulsive banger “Tension”, the flow of hits simply does not stop. I’m a gay man approaching 30, so of course I know how huge and delectable her back catalogue is, but to hear all of her sparkling, euphoric tunes back-to-back? It’s staggering.

Perhaps most interestingly is that this isn’t just a greatest hits show. Kylie doesn’t appear on stage in a white hooded jumpsuit, harking back to a bygone era. This is a star proving, though she needn’t, that her hits of today spark as much joy as the ones which made her name post Neighbours in 1987.

The celestial “Hold On To Now” and “Things We Do For Love” from last year’s Tension album are magical, while during the encore, a surprise appearance from fellow pop powerhouses Tove Lo and Bebe Rexha for “My Oh My” gives the audience a final energy boost – despite the song coming out 48 hours prior. Even “Midnight Ride”, a recent, middling collaboration with queer country star Orville Peck, goes off.

At points, it feels like Kylie Minogue may not even need be on the stage. Her discography is so turbo-charged that it carries the show for her.

There’s a rare appearance from her curious verge into R&B, “Red Blooded Woman”, which hasn’t been performed since 2009 – one fan jokes that she only performs it under a Labour government. 2003’s “Slow”, the most sensual on Kylie’s hit list, gets a new Brat-like remix, culminating in explosive club beats. “Can’t Get You Out Of My Head” goes into “All The Lovers” goes into “On A Night Like This”. It’s enough to leave you gasping for air.

The feeling is mutual. “I knew you were going to be here tonight, but you still take my breath away,” Kylie says at the beginning of her set, borderline emotional, humble as ever. Though she played this exact stage nine years ago in 2015, and has played many stages since, she still seems genuinely astounded to see a sea of 65,000 revellers in front of her. Her unthinkable success has barely gone to her ankles, let alone her head.

It’s part of the reason why she is so adored. Despite being crammed full with slabs of dance-pop, her set feels as cosy as it does hedonistic.

The smile that stays stamped across her face for the entire show, the break out into fan-requested acapella versions of “2 Hearts” and “I Should Be So Lucky”, the acknowledgment of “The Loco-Motion” despite its monumental cheese – it feels like a show curated personally for each of us, whatever our age when we discovered her greatness. We don’t need to ask to come into her world; the door is already open.

The biggest testament to Kylie’s enduring pop superstardom is just how effortless she makes it all look. She segues between eras, costume changes and dance routines with all the faff of someone flicking through TV channels. This is innate to her. 

Music industry insiders might have you believe that Kylie’s light was dimming pre-“Padam Padam”. That’s rubbish. Well before 2023 she had curated a catalogue that most music makers could only ever dream of, and she retains an ease on stage that is incredibly rare to come by. She didn’t need another chart hit for that to be true.

She may be down to earth, but don’t be mistaken: she has and always will be out of this world.

★★★★★