Radio 1 Anthems Live In Bradford

In the year when the spotlight was on Bradford as UK City of Culture, the city may have missed out on hosting two of the biggest musical events of the year, namely Radio 1’s Big Weekend in May and the Radio 2 in the Park event in September; it was left to the inaugural Radio 1 Anthems Live extravaganza to make up for any amendments.

With headliners Busted pulling out of the concert due to health issues with band member James Bourne, the lineup of chart acts was reduced to Pixie Lott and Tinie Tempah, along with DJ sets from Dean McCullough and Charlie Hedges, with Lauren Redfern as host.

Arriving early on stage, Lott took the Bradford audience through a quick résumé of her hits to date, culminating with the infectious number All About Tonight. With a full band alongside her and a full production, the moment was a refreshing one, not witnessed as much as it should be at what is now Bradford’s biggest concert venue.

As the fans danced and cheered loudly, all flushed with excitement, the potential that the venue holds for holding pop and rock concerts was there for anyone to see. With only a handful of major pop concerts booked in at the venue so far, the energy in the room felt like a call out to big artists to come and perform in what should be a main stop-off in any top band's touring schedule.

Tinie Tempah brought the vibes, songs and good-natured attitude in his first appearance in the city. Helped by tracks like Written in the Stars, Miami 2 Ibiza and the appropriately named new single Energy, Tempah was an attractive proposition.

“This is probably the best new venue in the country,” proclaimed DJ Charlesy. “You can smell the freshness too,” he continued as the enthusiastic crowd responded with a huge cheer as he and Tempah appeared surprised at the huge response they received from the lively fans.

With Charlie Hedges closing the night with a DJ set, despite playing some club classics, it somehow all felt second best to what would have been Busted’s first appearance in Bradford. As Hedges tried to make up for their non-appearance, she slipped in a dance remix of their big hit, Year 3000 – even that couldn’t disguise the fact that maybe a replacement live act should have been booked in to close the night.

Dropping the Faithless dance standard, Insomnia to close her set, it was time to call it a night on what had been a mixed affair, where the only ones tonight losing any sleep would have been the disappointed Busted fans.