Live Review: You Definitely Missed Out If You Didn't Make It To FOMO In Sydney

Early FOMO festival-goers took full advantage of the space in front of the Parramatta Park stage during early sets from NES, Ninajirachi and French producer Dombresky, breaking out some of the most enthusiastic dancing of the day. It was Canadian DJ Whipped Cream though, who really got things started. Five minutes into her super dynamic set, her bass-heavy, genre-blending beats started drawing seated punters on the hill to the pit.

Chillinit @ FOMO Sydney. Photo by Simone Fisher.

Sydney’s own Chillinit was the first rapper to take to the FOMO stage, patriotically kicking off his set with a cricket bat, hitting balls into the crowd to Men At Work’s Down Under. The entertaining MC clearly had a lot of fans in the crowd who responded to his high energy performance of One Breath. One Take with equal enthusiasm.

Rico Nasty @ FOMO Sydney. Photo by Simone Fisher.

US rapper Rico Nasty gave 110 percent, opening her consistently powerful set with Trust Issues. “What’s up, Sydney?” she asked the crowd, “I’ve been waiting for you bitches”. The highlight of her set was her Doja Cat collaboration Tia Tamera, fans rapping every line of her verse along with her as CO2 jets shot into the air. 

Giggs @ FOMO Sydney. Photo by Simone Fisher.

The festival had seemed to be slowly building energy throughout the day, but lulled a bit during the start of British rapper Giggs’ set, despite his solid performance and delivery. He was able to get back some of the crowd’s enthusiasm by the end of his set with tracks off of his 2019 Big Bad album though, with Baby and 187 setting the mosh-pit off. 

Meduza @ FOMO Sydney. Photo by Simone Fisher.

We transitioned from rap back into beats with Italian producer Meduza (Mattia Vitale), the opening synth of crowd-pleaser Lose Control enough to get everyone back on their feet. He brought out Goodboys to provide vocals for their hit collaboration Piece Of Your Heart, a perfect closer as streamers and confetti rained down over the crowd.

Jax Jones @ FOMO Sydney. Photo by Simone Fisher.

Clad in a Western Sydney Wanderers jersey, the UK’s Jax Jones seemed to be having as much fun as his audience as he performed in between giant inflatable Instruction sauce and House Work cleaning product bottles. He wrapped up what was probably the most engaging DJ set of the day by bringing Chillinit back out for some more cricket fun, before holding up a toy koala as the intro of Circle Of Life rang out over the park. 

A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie @ FOMO Sydney. Photo by Simone Fisher.

A giant, iced-out inflatable hand was raised above the stage, signalling the arrival of New York’s A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie. Opening with one of his biggest hits, Look Back At It, A Boogie got the crowd moving. He asked his audience three questions; “How many people here like love? How many people here like drugs? How many people here like sex?”, as the cheers got increasingly louder. He brought out some local talent and gave a shoutout to Sydney’s The Kid Laroi, before opening up a circle pit for Drowning, his platinum record receiving deafening applause. 

Lizzo @ FOMO Sydney. Photo by Simone Fisher.

It was Lizzo however who got the loudest screams of the day – before she’d even made her way on stage. Proving why she was named Time’s Entertainer of The Year in 2019, the singer-songwriter and rapper, accompanied by her DJ and incredible dancers, started with Good As Hell, which described exactly how the crowd was feeling. She showed off her absolutely killer vocals with Cuz I Love You, her voice not wavering once during the cardio-heavy choreography of the more uptempo songs of her set. 

Every word she shouted between songs was highly quotable. She preached about self-love and body positivity while remaining incredibly funny. “I love Aussies. I’m gonna change my name to Lizzy”, she remarked, eliciting cheers from her audience. She took time to talk about the bushfires, admiring how the nation has come together and noting that she doesn't think it’s a coincidence that she’s here during the crisis.  

Church bells and the Wedding March introduced set-closer Truth Hurts. Fans screamed its opening line at the top of their voices, and cheered as Lizzo delivered a flute solo while twerking, wrapping up what felt like the festival's headline set.

Madeon @ FOMO Sydney. Photo by Simone Fisher.

Lizzo’s a hard act to follow but French DJ Madeon did a hell of a job of it. Punters who stuck around were treated to a visually impressive set, with Madeon taking to the mic, performing Good Faith (2019) tracks including No Fear No More, Miracle and All My Friends. He reminisced about his very first tour in Australia, winning over fans with his kind words. 

Brockhampton @ FOMO Sydney. Photo by Simone Fisher.

With their coordinated outfits and lightly choreographed moves, hip hop’s favourite boy band Brockhampton took to the stage. Each member introduced themselves before they delivered their biggest hit, Bleach, which everyone swayed along to. They checked on the state of the crowd several times throughout their set, making sure everyone was ok and even bringing some fans on stage. They made their way through as much of their catalogue as they could fit in, ending with No Halo, phone torches lighting up the park. 

Kaytranada @ FOMO Sydney. Photo by Simone Fisher.

Kaytranada, in his second time at FOMO Sydney, was an interesting way to close out the night. In previous years RL Grime and Nicki Minaj have wrapped things up with a bang, but Kaytranada, with his chilled-out hip hop and funk beats helped the festival unwind. He played tracks off of his new record Bubba, including 10% featuring FOMO ‘19 standout Kali Uchis, as well as his smooth mixes of Rihanna’s Kiss It Better and Chance The Rapper’s All Night.

The “one stage, no clashes” format of FOMO relies heavily on its solid line-ups, and so far they seem to always come through, although this year's order of artists seemed a little confusing.