Canadian pop star Tate McRae may not be a household name yet, but to young women, she’s one of the hottest performers on the planet right now.
The 22-year-old Calgary native put on quite the spectacle Wednesday night at St. Paul’s Xcel Energy Center in front of a totally devoted, sold out crowd of about 15,000. In terms of shock, awe and attention to the finest of details, McRae is approaching Taylor Swift and Beyonce territory. Pity about the songs. (More on that in a bit.)
McRae started out as a dancer and began training at the age of six. By the time she was a teen, McRae was skilled enough to win awards in the North American dance scene. She also placed third on “So You Think You Can Dance” in 2016, setting a record for Canadian contestants on the show.
Soon after, she began posting original songs to her YouTube channel, which eventually led to a record deal. (At one point during Wednesday’s show, she accompanied herself on piano and played snippets of several of those early tracks.) Her career started to take off during the early days of the pandemic and she used the opportunity to perform live remotely to her advantage and landed spots on countless late night talk and award shows.
Once touring started up again, McRae hit the road and hasn’t left it. Her local history includes sets at the Basilica Block Party and KDWB Jingle Ball in 2021, followed by stops at First Avenue and the Fillmore before selling out the Armory last summer.
Given all her hard work, it’s no surprise what a polished performer she’s become. Wednesday night, she had the entire crowd focused on her every bump and grind and, given her dance background, there were plenty of them to see. She also surrounded herself with excellent dancers, including a pack of muscular young men who apparently slathered their bare torsos with baby oil.
Britney Spears is an obvious influence, from McRae’s endless hair flipping to her breathy vocals. It sounded like she was singing to a track, but then again, the crowd sang/shouted along to every song in the set, so it was sort of like she had thousands of backup vocals.
So, her songs. They, for the most part, are fine, just kind of generic. Her peppier stuff rock big beats with small hooks. The most memorable songs of her set Wednesday night included her 2020 breakthrough “You Broke Me First,” and her show-ending numbers “Sports Car” and “Greedy.” But none rise above mid-level album filler for the other performers mentioned in this review.
No matter. Given the confidence, stage presence and focus she showed Wednesday night, McRae’s not going away any time soon.
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