Concert Recap
Boys Like Girls brought the Spring tour to the Philippine stage with a triumphant set together with We The Kings
We The Kings and Boys Like Girls recently returned to the Philippines to perform for their fans. For many, the songs of these iconic bands were the anthems of their youth, love, and journey through life. The Filipino fans eagerly anticipated the Smart Araneta Coliseum concert, and they were not disappointed.
Travis Clark, the lead singer of We The Kings, opened the night by asking the crowd if they were ready to party as he performed “Skyway Avenue”, followed by “She Takes Me High.” The excited Pinoy rock screams increased, and Travis encouraged the crowd to scream louder and ask for more.
We The Kings is now on stage. They started the show with 'Skyway Avenue' followed by, 'She Takes Me High'.@pulpliveworld#BOYSLIKEGIRLSinMANILA2024 pic.twitter.com/cdVKMFDBIf— Buzzsetter (@buzzsetter_) April 20, 2024
After playing “She Takes Me High,” Travis greeted the crowd and introduced the band,“Hello Manila! We’re the band called “We The Kings”. We just want to let everyone know. How is everyone feeling?“
Travis then shared to the audiences, “Coley, where you at? I want you to feel this. There is somebody missing tonight. He stands over there and plays piano. He is so sad that he can’t play with us since he’s with Greenday; a very small band,” he jokingly told the crowd. “2024 is a crazy time, this next song requires Coley. This next is called “Secret Valentine.”
The concert reached one of its most memorable moments when Travis asked the crowd to do his kids’ dance move for the song “I Feel Alive.”
The band looked into the crowd and said, “ I f**king love you! Is it okay if we play a song? The next song is special. Very, very special and the reason is, I should tell you. Me and my wife have four kids, 8-year old, 6-year old, 4-year old, 2 year old. So basically, every year. My 5-year-old and 3-year-old created this dance move. But since we are far away from home, I need you to do the dance. And if you do it, it will mean more to me than you’ll ever know. This song is called “I Feel Alive” and it’s dedicated to my daughters.”
#WeTheKings continued to hype the crowd their song 'When We Were Young'.@pulpliveworld#BOYSLIKEGIRLSinMANILA2024 pic.twitter.com/uvIlemI4BI— Buzzsetter (@buzzsetter_) April 20, 2024
The entire Filipino crowd around Smart Araneta Coliseum joined the dance, squatting, jumping, and waving their hands to the song. The band was amazed by the crowd’s participation, and Travis couldn’t help but say,“ You guys, just did something that no other place has ever done. You guys started this, and you have changed “We The Kings” forever”.
The members continued their performance of “Just Keep Breathing”, “Fix You by Coldplay” and “Sad Song”. One of the night’s funniest moments was when the band played “Wonderwall by Oasis” and jokingly claimed it was one of their hit songs to many new fans at the concert. The band continued with “Say You Like Me” and “Mr. Brightside by the Killers”
@WeTheKings performs a cover song of 'Wonderwall' by Oasis#BOYSLIKEGIRLSinMANILA2024 @pulpliveworld pic.twitter.com/9NwJ7CIr2K— Buzzsetter (@buzzsetter_) April 20, 2024
We The Kings finally ended their night by telling the crowd, “Hey, I love you guys so much but are you ready for Boys Like Girls? This next song will blow your mind. I want everyone in this arena to go fucking crazy!.
And with that, the band ended their performance with their hit “Check Yes Juliet“.
@WeTheKings ended their performance with 'Check Yes Juliet'.#BOYSLIKEGIRLSinMANILA2024 @pulpliveworld pic.twitter.com/pfEw0jzQFd— Buzzsetter (@buzzsetter_) April 20, 2024
Boys Like Girls took the stage next, and the crowd was ecstatic. We The Kings, charmed the Pinoy rock with their personalities and performance, but there is no denying that every fan was waiting for “Boys Like Girls” to get on stage. They immediately made an impact with the crowd rocking out to “Love Drunk”, “Five Minutes to Midnight”, “Heel Over Head” and “Thunder.”
The band continued to hype the night with 'Heels Over Head'.#BOYSLIKEGIRLSinMANILA2024@pulpliveworld pic.twitter.com/AzGQTrkMmZ— Buzzsetter (@buzzsetter_) April 20, 2024
Lead singer Martin Johnson shared to the crowd, “Our first time in the Philippines was in 2009, This is what’s gonna happen tonight. We are gonna play every song. We got 30 songs on the setlist. Let’s start it like how we started in Boston.”
#BoysLikeGirls performs their hit song 'Thunder'.
#BOYSLIKEGIRLSinMANILA2024 @pulpliveworld pic.twitter.com/LQ6o9Qaabb— Buzzsetter (@buzzsetter_) April 20, 2024
#BoysLikeGirls rock the night with 'The Great Escape'#BOYSLIKEGIRLSinMANILA2024 @pulpliveworld pic.twitter.com/I1GFNvnSS2— Buzzsetter (@buzzsetter_) April 20, 2024
The band continued to play their hits but also performed covers of “Born In The USA” by Bruce Springsteen and “I Can’t Stop Me” by TWICE. Martin told the crowd, “ I really love coming here man. Telling you that. I wanna know who’s the best Boy Like Girls fan, and I say the Philippines every single time. I’ll stay here every night. This is so much that I know about the Philippines. They are the best f**king fans in the world.“
#BOYSLIKEGIRLSinMANILA2024 concluded the night with 'Two Is Better Than One'. @pulpliveworld pic.twitter.com/PGqmLrpipX— Buzzsetter (@buzzsetter_) April 20, 2024
Martin encouraged the crowd to take a video of their performance, “The Great Escape”, and ended the night. However, the crowd kept asking for an encore, and Martin returned with an acoustic version of their hit “Two is Better One”. The concert was an unforgettable experience for every Pinoy rock fan who will cherish it for years to come.
Special thanks to PULP Live World for the media invite.
