Entering the World of Omar Apollo: The Prototype Tour Review

On a Friday night in the middle of downtown Norfolk, Virginia, was a crowd of 1500 people waiting for a performance from none other than Omar Apollo. The energy flowed through the room after opener, Ravyn Lenae, stunned the crowd with her enchanting vocals and almost fairy-like presence. Everyone was ready for Apollo to take the stage. At 9:02 pm, the lights dimmed and the room started to shake as the opening interlude, “Ivory,” seeped out of the speakers. The stage was suddenly filled with blue light and the guitar chords of the first song, “Killing Me,” floated through the venue. With a signature “Omar Apollo spin,” the night had begun.

More recently known as the singer of “Evergreen (You Didn’t Deserve Me At All),” Apollo started his career in his hometown of Hobart, Indiana. At the age of 20, he released a string of singles that lead up to EPs Stereo and Friends. With success from tracks such as “Ugotme” and “Unbothered”, Apollo garnered the attention of large labels and was soon scooped up by Warner Records. In 2020 he then compiled his mixtape, Apolonio, which featured tracks “Useless”, “Want U Around (feat. Ruel),” “Kamikaze,” and “Hey Boy (feat. Kali Uchis).” After taking a two year break from releasing music, Apollo released his debut album, Ivory. Ivory houses collaborations with names such as Daniel Caesar, Pharell, Sean Leon, and Kali Uchis and has become his biggest project to date.

At The Norva, Apollo constantly interacted with the crowd, joking about the pronunciation of Norfolk and the “daddies” in the crowd. This made it feel like he was in constant conversation with his fans, which is essential in a smaller venue.

Much like his discography, his setlist bounced back and forth between slick, indie songs and punchy, upbeat Spanglish songs, keeping the crowd on their toes. Apollo skillfully wove his way through his fast-paced track, “Dos Uno Nueve (219),” and border-line rap song, “Tamagotchi,” all while spinning and dancing across the stage and interacting with the audience. However, the real standout moments of his set were during slower songs such as “Petrified,” “Mr. Neighbor,” and “Invincible”. During “Petrified,” Apollo stunned with his smooth and piercing vocals during the final chorus of the song. The crowd held their flashlights up, bathing Apollo in light during his most emotional performance of the night.

After only an hour and a half of being in the world of Omar Apollo, it is easy to say that Apollo will continue to amaze with not only the versatile nature of his music, but also with his impressive vocals and personable stage presence.