Dominic Fike concludes a long, long-awaited debut UK run at London's Hammersmith Apollo

Words: Finlay Holden.Photo: Burak Cingi.

In 2016, Florida native Dominic Fike kicked off a series of events that would go on to shape his life in many ways. While under house arrest for the battery of a police officer, he broke the terms of probation and served a year in jail as a result; when his producer dropped a demo tape and sent major labels into a bidding frenzy, he sat behind those bars focusing all energy into what he would do when he got out.

You probably know most of the rest already - the 'Don't You Forget About Me' EP would soon achieve global success and bring with it the burden of high expectations, many of which he would live up to - but that initial stain on his record would continue to haunt him when it came to exploring the world. The now LA-based singer has been banned from the UK for a decade, but with immense fan support and "some good lawyers", the time has finally come for his first visit to the British capital.

"It's every bit as beautiful as it thought it would be," he declares from the stage of Hammersmith Apollo, a venue bursting at the seams with fans desperate for their first glance at the established superstar. His UK fanbase may have missed out on the opportunity to spot a glimpse of the buzzy, informative era of Fike's early days, but the artist standing before them tonight is a collected, accomplished and multifaceted creative at the top of his game and very much still on the rise. Recently appearing in the generation-defining drama Euphoria, featuring on the soundtrack of the two highest-grossing blockbusters of the summer (Spiderman: Across The Spiderverse, Barbie) and having just dropped his second full-length record, now is as good a moment as any to see the man in the flesh.

There's a lot to catch up on, for sure, but Dominic isn't relying on nostalgia to prove his worth. Answering hysteric screams with the subdued intro of 'How Much Is Weed?', he gives off the air of a performer who, despite attempts to suggest otherwise, is very much in control of the room. At the same time, his free-wheeling attitude is what has always put him in his own lane, pulling on genres and influences at a whim to continuously open up new vibes.