Addison Rae kicked off her pop music career with a bold performance at the theatrical downtown hotspot The Box in Manhattan on Thursday night, celebrating the release of her debut album, "Addison," in collaboration with Spotify.
By the time the 24-year-old singer, social media star, and creator of viral TikTok videos took the stage, everyone in the packed house was already in a frenzy, who turned her show into a spectacle with costume changes and a dramatic stage setup that even conjured up early-2000s Britney Spears with a playlist of seven songs.
Rae opened her set around 9:45 PM, lying down in a bed-like stage setup and performing "Fame Is a Gun." About halfway through, a group of dancers unpeeled a sheet to reveal Rae in flesh-toned lingerie, her wrists and ankles bound with a rope that was later cut loose so she could dance without constraint.
Her next was a sexy, jazz-infused cover of "High Fashion," holding an old-timey microphone that seemed borrowed from Spears' own "Onyx Hotel" Tour in 2004.
After a costume switch, Rae returned, now in an aquamarine gown, to sing "Aquamarine," a single from her debut album.
The event, which PEOPLE says wasn't quite like a traditional album release party, was more of an artistic experience within a music venue.
"We partnered with Addison to create an unforgettable night, a true immersion into the unique, colorful, dreamy world of her debut album," said Lucy Davidson of Spotify's label partnerships team in a statement. "At Spotify, that's always our goal—creating moments that fans will always remember."
Addison On Her Sound and Career
Rae's self-titled debut album, "Addison," is built on a lithe, synthy pop sound and a confident sensuality that feels like her in the flesh, Rae says.
"I'm a very sensual and sexual person. I'm very intimate with myself and my body, and everything kind of reflects that," she told Variety. "Everything feels very personal."
The singer also emphasized the importance of collaborating with an all-female production team, which included Luka Kloser and Elvira. "It feels really beautiful and magical that it is just all females," she said. "I never set out for it to be that way... you almost don't get that opportunity very much."
While Rae has been hailed as pop's next "It girl," the title is one she's wary of assuming too soon. "It is obviously very complimentary," she said. "What does that even mean, really, to be the pop girl? Let's see if the songs get more popular, then they can call me a pop girl. This is my shot. I've got to go big."
Rae also performed in New York, and her debut single, "Diet Pepsi," allowed audience members to sing along with her. And for the encore, she returned to the stage to play Times Like These, accompanied by dancers in bras and denim—a further nod to Spears' 2007 nightclub tour.
It ended with Rae and her dancers holding glasses of champagne and cheering. "Thank you for being here with us tonight," she told the crowd. "Now, go get drunk and have fun!"
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