‘IT’S LOVING, IT’S SEXY, IT’S LOUD’

A panoramic view into Hayley Kiyoko’s newest tour

BY GABBY MACOGAY

Pop icon Hayley Kiyoko reveals that the songwriting process for her latest album, Panorama, was pretty straightforward. When she came into the studio each day, she knew exactly what she wanted to say and how she wanted to say it.

However, that doesn’t mean that inspiration can’t strike when you least expect it — such as from a late-night matcha order, for example.

“It was like 9 p.m. and I don’t really like to write at night. I had ordered a matcha because I was tired and I was shaking the matcha and found the sugar was on the bottom of the matcha. I was like, ‘Ugh, why is it every time you get a drink, all the good stuff is on the bottom, like all the sugar is at the bottom?’ And then we all looked at each other and we’re like, ‘Oh my gosh, it’s a song!,’” Kiyoko says during a phone interview with Orlando Weekly. “We wrote the song in 40 minutes and that was it. So sometimes, you have miracles like that where the song just blows out of you — like it needs to be said.”

Just like that, Kiyoko had found the name of her album opener, “Sugar at the Bottom.” Each track off Panorama is a unique look into the creative depths of Kiyoko’s mind, an exuberant force split between a variety of mediums. From jump-starting her acting career as a child to recording her own music to releasing her own gender-inclusive fragrance to writing a novel based on her hit song, “Girls Like Girls,” Kiyoko is a creative powerhouse.

“The Panorama Tour” follows the release of Kiyoko’s second album, Panorama. While the tour began overseas at the beginning of April, Thursday’s Orlando show officially marks the start of the North American leg. As she sat on a train in Zurich, Switzerland, Kiyoko discussed the anticipation of seeing her Florida fans again.

“I remember one of my shows in Orlando very vividly because it just was so loud. My fans in Florida are just amazing,” Kiyoko says. “I’m so excited to kick off ‘The Panorama Tour’ with everyone in Orlando — it’s the perfect way to set the tone right.”

When scrolling through Twitter after each show, Kiyoko says she’s delighted to find fans sending her love and thanks for an “amazing therapy session.”

“It’s been amazing. The shows have been incredible and extremely loud — like my ears have been ringing after every show,” Kiyoko says.

Kiyoko began working on Panorama during the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, and although the circumstances were bleak, Kiyoko was able to find inspiration and peace within herself. She says that finally being able to take these songs

HAYLEY KIYOKO with Emmy Meli, Katherine Li

6 p.m. Thursday, April 27 House of Blues Disney Springs, Lake Buena Vista houseofblues.com

$35-$75 out into the world and reconnect with her fans has been a rewarding experience.

“Writing and creating the Panorama world has been a wonderful way for me to reclaim my power within myself and find my confidence. We all navigated this pandemic feeling so isolated and alone. A lot of us lost a lot of different things about ourselves but also gained all these new, wonderful tools and things and have learned so much about ourselves now,” Kiyoko says.

Kiyoko says that while she continues to discover new things about herself, she will continue to remain consistent in the way she challenges herself to be truthful and honest through her work.

“I think honesty and truth can be very scary. And so when you’re writing music, you really have to challenge yourself to be like, ‘OK, this is what you feel. But how do you actually feel? What’s really going on down there?’ I think as long as we continue to stay open and honest with ourselves, there will always be that red thread throughout my music,” Kiyoko says.

Kiyoko has gained a fervent fanbase in the pop music scene for her openness surrounding her sexuality and ability to express her identity through music. Rolling Stone described Kiyoko’s debut album, Expectations, as launching her to “the forefront of an unapologetically queer pop movement.” Kiyoko has remained a strong advocate for LGBTQ+ rights, even being deemed “Lesbian Jesus” by some dedicated fans.

“I think it can be challenging for people to live their authentic truth and so it’s super important to be able to share that if you’re at that point in your journey. For me, seeing is believing. So if you see someone being able to thrive and to be happy or to find joy and hope who has a similar experience or has grown up similar to you, that inspires you to be like, ‘Hey, maybe I can get through this and maybe I shouldn’t give up and maybe I should keep going,’” Kiyoko says. “I think the more we can all live our authentic truth and love ourselves, the more other people will be able to love themselves as well.”

Kiyoko recalls one of her personal favorite lyrics on the new album from title track, “Panorama.” The phrase, “Wait, have you seen the view,” represent her longing to find peace in the present.

“All of us have dreams and aspirations and I feel like a lot of the time we wait until we’re finally there, or we pass the finish line, or we’ve made it, but it’s so important to enjoy every step of the journey along the way,” Kiyoko says. “Appreciating the view and the moments as you’re continuing to try to strive for your dreams and self love.”

She explains that interactions with fans remind her of the joys found in the current moment.

“I think it can be hard for us, or for myself, to not be in my head. And so to be able to be present is such a gift,” Kiyoko says.

“Being on this tour has been absolutely incredible. Being onstage and being present with my fans and getting to share those experiences. … I can’t wait to see everyone in Orlando. It’s going to be a great time.” music@orlandoweekly.com

Local Releases

Chances are, you’d know Orlando’s Brian Manowitz more for his Vegan Black Metal Chef video series than his music. The ragingly ridiculous cooking videos on his YouTube channel — where he walks you through recipes like a screaming dark lord commanding a demon army into battle — have garnered millions of hits.

His earnest music, on the other hand, is a more secondary concern. Manowitz’s solo vehicle, Forever Dawn, has only just released a second collection of songs, and this follow-up comes nearly a decade after its predecessor, debut album The Long Journey Home. As notable as the eternity between the releases is the stylistic leap that new EP Lightbringer takes.

While 2014’s The Long Journey Home is primarily a black-metal record, Lightbringer is a thoroughly industrial outing, despite Manowitz’s corpse paint. While you’d expect some subversive mirth to come from the mind of the Vegan Black Metal Chef, Manowitz plays it far more straight and serious in Forever Dawn than in his cooking videos. Just look at the photo above — that mug and them flames ain’t fuckin’ around.

With a heavy dance-floor stomp, sweeping synths and growling vocals that could easily be mistaken for Nivek Ogre, Lightbringer is a colossal storm of electronic drama. It’s a five-song fusillade that will keep you on the dance floor the whole time and a big stylistic pivot for Forever Dawn that’s right on time for the industrial renaissance happening in underground music right now. Lightbringer now streams everywhere.

Concert Picks This Week

Spike Hellis, Mother Juno, Body Shop: Nothing in Orlando embodies

Chances are, you know Brian Manowitz more for his Vegan Black Metal Chef videos than his music. Manowitz’s solo vehicle Forever Dawn just released Lightbringer, a thoroughly industrial outing with a heavy dance-floor stomp the striking style of the 1980s like Panic Underground, and their latest show will be an especially bold showcase of that iconic subterranean spirit.

L.A. duo Spike Hellis are a bright young act who mine the sleeker synth side of electronic body music with their dark and sinewy dance sound. Orlando’s own arty fringe will be represented by openers Mother Juno and Body Shop. DJs NM and Key Tone will keep the action nonstop with deep cuts. (9 p.m. Friday, April 28, Iron Cow, $15)

Georgette Jones: With the recent release of Showtime series George & Tammy, based on her memoir as the daughter of legends Tammy Wynette and George Jones, this should be a particularly hot ticket. But even a royal bloodline wouldn’t be worth a show endorsement if that’s all this scion had. While Georgette Jones does feature some modern stripes, her music is rooted much more in true country than the pop tendencies of her contemporaries. Honestly, I don’t

BY BAO LE-HUU

know if her DNA would allow it any other way. Although Jones is Nashville-based, she was actually born in Florida so this is a homecoming of sorts. It’ll be a prime chance to hear a voice that carries the flame of generational greatness. You know, no pressure or anything. (7 p.m. Friday, April 28, Orange Blossom Opry, $30-$45)

The Dreaded Laramie, Virginity, Expert Timing: Apparently, new Mills 50 spot Framework Craft Coffee House isn’t just making a play in the coffee shop business but also in the show game. This upcoming concert is an especially notable one with Nashville femmecore band the Dreaded Laramie. Their indie rock is an irresistible confection of buoyant, perfect melodies and fuzzy edges. Add in notable, likeminded locals Virginity and Expert Timing and you’ve got a quality rock bill that will bring both the power and the pop.

(8 p.m. Monday, May 1, Framework Craft Coffee House, $12)

Newski, Trash Cinema, Kyle & The 8-Minute Miles: 1990s revivalism isn’t exactly rare these days, but the alt-rock commitment of Wisconsin’s Newski is on a plane of its own. His latest collaborative album, Friend Rock, just released on April 7, is packed with a guest list of his idols including the likes of Nada Surf’s Matthew Caws, Guster’s Ryan Miller, the Verve Pipe’s Brian Vander Ark and Red Wanting Blue’s Scott Terry. Though the star cameos are noteworthy and fun, Newski’s hookfilled songs can stand on their own merits. Opening are local indie-rock bands Trash Cinema and Kyle & The 8-Minute Miles.

(8 p.m. Wednesday, May 3, Will’s Pub, $15) baolehuu@orlandoweekly.com

APRIL 27-30

Streetcar Named Desire

Stellaaaaaaa? Southern bard par excellence Tennessee Williams’ tale of the tragedies of Blanche DuBois are about to get a retelling in an unexpected medium — ballet. Orlando Ballet makes over the Dr. Phillips Center into a sweat-soaked New Orleans as they present choreographer Annabelle Lopez Ochoa’s transformation of Williams’ iconic play. It’s a fascinating conceit, taking Williams’ gorgeous and wracked wordplay and boiling it down into non-verbal movement — and action and grace, power and vulnerability. Lopez Ochoa debuted her reconceptualized Streetcar a decade ago at the Scottish Ballet. But it’s key to point out that there has only been one other stateside performance to date, in Nashville (also in the South, obviously and gratifyingly). Streetcar is part of a very physical and visceral season at the Ballet, definitely of a part with the gothic contortions of Dracula and the ecstatic explosions of Moulin Rouge. You’ve got four days to see this one, and then it sinks back into the swamp. Steinmetz Hall, Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, 445 S. Magnolia Ave., drphillipscenter.org, $29-$119.

— Matthew Moyer

FRIDAY, APRIL 28

Anuel AA

Friday is sure to be legendary when Anuel AA makes his return to Orlando. The Puerto Rican trap star is kicking off his big-time “Legends Never Die” tour right here in Orlando before taking it all over the country.

Emmanuel Santiago, aka Anuel AA, is hitting the road in the wake of the chart success of his third album, Las Leyendas Nunca Mueren Multiple singles from the album topped the Billboard charts, including collabs with Mora, Myke Towers, Jhayco and Eladio Carrion. The singer-rapper does love a good collab, with past efforts with big names like Bad Bunny, Enrique Iglesias and Karol G already under his fashionable belt. Santiago has been busy in the lead-up to the tour, with last week’s appearance on the Latin American Music Awards and a just-released sneaker