A month ago, YouGov released results of a survey which claimed that church attendance among 18-to 24-year-olds had quadrupled from 2018 to 2024. The poll was eventually found to have fraudulent responses and was pulled – but at the Spanish superstar Rosalía’s pious opening night of her Lux tour at London’s O2 Arena, the idea that young people are finding their faith wasn’t hard to believe.
The Catalonian singer’s latest album, Lux, was revered upon its release in 2025 and topped many albums-of-the-year lists. It is an experimental masterpiece, sung in 14 languages and with deeply religious overtones: the lyrics are inspired by the lives of several female saints and explore Rosalía’s relationship with God. Not exactly the most obvious material for a pop concert.
The first sign that the Lux show would be different was the placement of the orchestra, led by Cuban conductor Yudania Gómez Heredia, right in the centre of the floor. They were lit for the entire performance, offering the classical musicians a reverence that other stars might see as a distraction from their light. Indeed, even as Rosalía’s angelic voice rang out, I found my eyes constantly drawn back to Heredia.
For the rest of the time, though, I was mesmerised by the 33-year-old. She arrived on stage via a box, ostensibly holding a precious artwork, dressed as a ballerina complete with pointe shoes. And sure enough, during the dark, rap-led “Porcelona” – she began to dance en pointe. I began to wonder if Rosalía was herself a deity – in that moment, she seemed to be capable of anything.
The gallery theme continued with a cover of Frankie Valli’s “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You”, sung from behind a gilded frame which pitched Rosalía as a Mona Lisa type character, beguiling smirk to boot. Later, during a costume change, she asked audience members to recreate the pose of a classical painting, while other artworks – the armless body of the Venus de Milo recreated by clever lighting during “La Perla”, for example – were portrayed through dance.
But it was when Rosalía leaned into the religious connotations of her work that she truly wowed. She sang an early rendition of “Mio Cristo piange diamanti” (sung in Italian; translation: “My Christ Cries Diamonds”) wrapped in a long headdress akin to the Virgin Mary, stripping away any distractions from Rosalía’s intense, powerful voice. Later, during a bass-heavy rendition of “CUUUUuuuuuute” from her decidedly less classical 2022 album Motomami, a swinging, smoking speaker symbolised a thurible, turning the O2 into a giant Catholic church.
Another astonishing moment came when she went back to her flamenco roots, belting out a brooding song about the crucifixion. Towards the end of the show, Rosalía would have her own “death”, dressed as an angel while singing “Focu ’ranni” in Sicilian, a surprisingly joyous and personal song about the end of a relationship: “I will not be your other half/Never your property/I will be mine/With my own freedom.”
The evening was drawn to a close with the same track that ends Lux, “Magnolias”, a stunning lament imagining her loved ones – and her enemies – throwing flowers at her own funeral. As a glowing light shone created a halo behind her head before she walked into the light, I began to understand her connection to the idea that that there is something bigger than us out there.
Rosalía’s talent and intelligence is otherworldly. There is only one way to describe a night spent under her glow: a religious experience.
Rosalía plays the O2 again tonight, then tours the US