Annika Bennett is definitely “Strong Enough”

Annika Bennett was the opener for ROLE MODEL’s No Place Like Tour in Europe. The last stop on the road was Barcelona, where we were fortunate enough to see her. “I’m Sabrina Carpenter”, she introduced herself after getting on stage, filling the room with laughter. She quickly added, “Sorry, not my bit, not my bit”. For those who might not know, ROLE MODEL has an ongoing joke where he introduces himself as random artists every night (so far, he’s assumed the identity of Sabrina, Ed Sheeran, Jacob Elordi, and many other victims).

Annika’s thirty-minute set convinced me that, though I didn’t know her before, I would be listening to her music afterwards. During an intimate performance, she connected with a receptive audience that quickly warmed up to her. She sang a few of her songs, including “Power, Sex, Dreams”, a catchy tale about the chaos of being a girl in her twenties – the good and the bad. She jokingly warned us that there are commas between each word, and we shouldn’t think about the title too much the other way. The setlist also included “A Tree Falls”, an introspective, emotional song guaranteed to give you goosebumps. Her duality allows her to deliver poignant lines such as “I’ll still love you even if you never know” while managing to keep the atmosphere incredibly light.

During the tour, Annika covered a different song every night. Before singing the last one, she assured us: “You guys know this”. That’s when she started playing Billie Eilish’s “BIRDS OF A FEATHER”, which suited her soft vocals. By the way, and this is an amazing fun fact: she had just learned how to play it. Of course, had she not said it, we would’ve been none the wiser. Her idea to cover viral songs during her sets was a great way to engage the whole audience, not that this was a struggle for her.

After all, Annika Bennett captivated the Barcelona crowd with her powerful yet delicate voice and gentle guitar strums. Lyrically speaking, her relatability deserves to be mentioned. In preparation for her track “Annabelle”, she popped the question: “Has anyone ever had a crush on a girl?”, which of course was greeted with confirming screams and screeches. She explained the inspiration behind the song, that is, the universal experience of developing feelings for a friend and not knowing where you stand. “If you have to ask yourself if you’re more than friends, then you probably are”, she said through a laugh.

We were also lucky enough to hear an unreleased song called “For Men”. I am obsessed with the misleading title, as the target demographic is far from being men. The song’s inception came about with Trump’s re-election last November, a devastating result that leaves women across the States unprotected. Confiding in us, Annika said that while she doesn’t usually feel what is described as “female rage”, she did that day. At the beginning of tour, she wasn’t sure how she felt about the song, but it grew on her night after night and she decidedly loves it now. We do, too.

The crowd couldn’t have asked for a better start to an amazing night, and since there really is no place like tour, I’m looking forward to seeing Annika headline her shows. Someone in the first row had even brought a sign with lyrics from one of her songs, so I have a feeling we’ll be seeing more of her soon. For now, you can check out her debut album “Live From Mother Earth”, and I encourage you to do so.

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