X marks the spot – and the spot to be on Friday, February 7th, 2020, was Terminal 5, the venue for the New York stop of Amber Liu’s 2020 Tour X!
“Tour X is special to me,” Amber shared. “X,” to Amber, celebrates her ten years spent in the industry since her debut as a member of SM Entertainment’s f(x) – but it also represents her crossing off all the negative things in her life (with an X!) for a clean, blank slate that she can fill with anything that she wants. It might seem daunting to start with a clean slate, but it’s a lot easier when you have pieces of advice to guide you. Over the course of the night, Amber and her opening acts Justin Park and Meg & Dia shared so many life lessons with the audience – now, we’re sharing these words with you!
Follow your dreams!.
Taking the stage in velvet cheetah print, overalls, and a red bandana, Justin Park’s endless enthusiasm in singing, dancing, and vibing let us know that he’s leading by example for this bit of advice. “Whether it’s becoming a singer or a doctor, follow your dreams! I never thought I’d be doing this,” shared Justin. He has achieved his dreams of being a singer, and we got to reap the benefits of the silky smooth riffs of Amber’s first opening act!
If something ends, that doesn’t mean it’s a failure.
When they weren’t harmonizing like angels or quipping cutely with the audience, opening act Meg & Dia shared candid stories about their lives – specifically, their dating lives. Even when relationships end and we’re left with a long healing process, there’s a lot of good to come out of them. (For example, lots of incredible music on Meg & Dia’s end: the duo performed an acoustic version of “Koala,” written about Dia’s ex-turned-best-friend, and “Dear Heart,” a letter Meg wrote to her own heart).
Be yourself!
Amber Liu started the night by outlining the most important rule, and the only rule, at any concert of hers: this is a Be Yourself zone! Fans were encouraged to be true to themselves and do whatever they want, whether it’s dancing crazily to her songs (we were subscribers to that method!) or slowly jamming and vibing. Authenticity is key.
Flexibility is key.
A hallmark of Tour X is the cute nicknames given to each stop: Milwaukee was named “Power Bitches,” Philadelphia was named “Tax Returns,” and now New York was tasked with the daunting challenge of naming themselves. After vetoing “Rats” and “It’s So Cold,” New Yorkers were excited to call themselves “Llama City!” Cue Amber adorable yelling, “Are you ready, Llama City?” before jumping into “White Noise.” But in a world full of infinite possibilities, we should always be open to the next best option. Following the emotional "Numb," fans talked about how they needed cuddles, which then morphed into needing a cuddle puddle, which Amber liked so much that the city unanimously decided to switch from Llama City to Cuddle Puddle. Helloooo, Cuddle Puddles of NY!
Stay hydrated!
Just watching Amber and her back-up dancers dance and jump around on stage had us thirsty (in more than one way). Amber noted that even though she usually forgets to drink water, her dancers always have her back: they reminded her to drink water and even prompted the entire crowd to chant, “Chug, chug, chug!” Amber did indeed give us what we wanted: a signed, chugged water bottle thrown into the crowd, and our favorite person, hydrated.
The world won’t ever throw you something you can’t handle.
Amber opened up to us about her relationship with her mother: the way they weren’t close at first and the emotions and tenderness of a conversation in broken English and broken Mandarin had us in our feels. Amber passed on this piece of advice that she received from her mom in that conversation – a piece of advice that also inspired “Borders.”
You can’t change what happens to you, but you can change how you can react to it.
How do family members always give us the best advice? Amber’s older sister and role model Jackie gifted her with these words of wisdom and taught her that it’s okay for Amber to love herself and be herself even when it seemed that everything was telling her otherwise. Amber shared that same message of self-love with us through “Beautiful.” We are all so freaking beautiful.
Don’t be afraid to ask for help.
At a tender moment of the show, Amber opened up to us about her struggle with panic attacks. It seemed easier for her to just ignore her struggles and carry on instead of seeking help. When she told the audience that she did seek professional help, she was met with endless cheers – we all just want her to be happy and cared for, and she wants the same for us!
Stay calm.
This piece of advice is what underlines Amber’s eponymous track, “Stay Calm.” In times of distress, stay calm, and don’t be afraid to open up, love yourself, and ask for help. (Though, maybe it was hard to stay calm last night when our favorite person was right there... but that’s besides the point).
Have fun!
Through all the moments of emotion and tenderness, Amber never ceased to be bright, upbeat, and fun. From entering the stage in an Elsa cosplay flanked by her back-up dancers and Justin Park dressed in Frozen-themed outfits accordingly to strutting her stuff NYFW-style in that same dress to pie-ing her drummer in the face for his birthday, Amber leads by example. Life is a party, and the New York stop of Tour X was proof of that.
In the moments before leaving the stage, Amber left her fans with a few final words of advice:
“Love yourself, be kind, get boba, get pizza.”
Wise, wise words, and an unforgettable night. Just like us, Amber is just figuring things out as she goes – and it’s endlessly comforting to know that we have someone like her guiding us, rooting for us, and loving us just as much as we love her.
As Amber continues on with Tour X, we’ll continue to love her (and will do so long after the tour ends!) In the meantime – grab tickets if you can. Thank you for allowing KpopStarz press access, and check out our interview with Amber Liu here!
Article by: Kaitlin Cunanan
Photos by: Karen May
