It’s only been a year since The Vamps debuted on Philippine soil. This year, The Tide, Before You Exit, William Singe and Jayda Avanzado performed with them on the same stage. Fans knew they were in for a treat with a line-up such as this.

With a festival-like lineup, the Mall of Asia Arena was bursting with overly excited fans. The lines were spilling over to almost the whole back lot. The queue seemed to be moving at substantial pace and the show even started on time.

Jayda Avanzado opened the show with her powerful vocals. The crowd, hyped up for the show, sang along to her renditions and cheered her on.

Next on the roster was Australian singer William Siege with his soulful presence and ability to hit high notes. This YouTube star owned the stage as a solo opening act.

Before You Exit was the first of the three headliners to grace the stage. Security kept ushering fans back to their proper seats, but everyone was too excited and wanted to get the closest possible spot. The American musicians took a video of craziness to immortalize the moment.

The Tide gave a fun performance, challenging the arena to know who was the loudest. The fans more than obliged, stepped up, and screamed their lungs out. This screaming, cheering and shouting was a norm throughout the show—threatening to pierce eardrums at the level of excitement and enjoyment.

The crowd was at its peak as soon as a mini-movie flashed on screen alerting fans that it was time for The Vamps to take the stage. The British lads expressed their love for their Filipino fans as lead singer Bradley Simpson proclaimed, “A humongous, ridiculously bigger than this—” while extending his arms as wide as it could go, “—Thank you!”

The Vamps love their Filipino fans so much that even an injury from one of their members wouldn’t stop them from performing. Bassist, Connor Ball, twisted one of his knees during their Hong Kong show, but sat gracefully on his chair and played on. During one of their songs, Before You Exit even joined them on stage. Cue the crowd going bonkers once again and the volume increasing by a notch.

“Manila, you might be the best place on earth.” Bradley said and added that they want to stay.

The Vamps expressed their desire to be back in Manila every year and so far their words have rung true. It’s their second time in the country and almost a year to the date.

* Special Thanks to MMI Live

By Isabel Matias