Laufey brought Bewitched: The Goddess Tour to Manila in 2024, filling MOA Arena with dreamy jazz-pop, heartfelt songs, and beautiful live moments.
There are some concerts that feel less like a big arena show and more like spending an evening listening to your favorite songs with a few thousand other people.
Laufey's Bewitched: The Goddess Tour in Manila was definitely one of those nights for me. Her music has this very specific mix of jazz, bossa nova, old-school romance, and modern singer-songwriter pop, and somehow it worked perfectly inside a huge venue like the Mall of Asia Arena.
The Concert
| Artist | Laufey |
| Tour / Show | Bewitched: The Goddess Tour |
| Venue | SM Mall of Asia Arena |
| Date | September 2, 2024 |
| Location | Pasay City, Philippines |
| Duration | Around 1 hour, 30 minutes~ |
| Presented by | Karpos Multimedia |
About the show
Laufey brought her Bewitched: The Goddess Tour to Manila on September 2, 2024, marking her first arena headline show in the Philippines.
And honestly, I think the setting suited her more than I expected. Laufey's songs are usually the kind you listen to quietly on your own, so seeing them performed in an arena filled with fans gave the night a different kind of intimacy.
The show went through songs from Bewitched and her earlier releases, with Laufey moving between piano, guitar, and cello throughout the evening. The set included While You Were Sleeping, Falling Behind, Let You Break My Heart Again, California and Me, Goddess, Bewitched, Bored, and From the Start.
The photos I took also happened to capture how much the stage design changed throughout the show. There were deep blue and purple washes, warmer red and orange lighting, and softer moments where Laufey was simply standing at the center of the stage.
The Setlist
Laufey's Manila setlist was a mix of Bewitched favorites, older songs, and a few beautiful covers.
While You Were SleepingValentineSecond BestDreamerFalling BehindBeautiful StrangerI Wish You Love — Keely Smith coverPromiseLike the Movies / MistyNocturne — InterludeLet You Break My Heart AgainCalifornia and MeGoddessFragileBewitchedBoredLovesickFrom the Start — with Junia LinEncore:Letter to My 13 Year Old SelfWinter Wonderland — live debut
Concert Highlights
For me, one of the nicest things about this show was how the production never felt like it was competing with Laufey's music.
The quieter songs were especially suited to this kind of atmosphere. Let You Break My Heart Again, California and Me, and Goddess all have that dreamy, slightly melancholic quality that translated really well live.
And then, of course, there were the songs that everyone knew.
From the Start was one of those moments where you could feel the energy shift. Laufey performed it with her twin sister Junia Lin, who joined her for the song.
I also really liked the more theatrical lighting during Bewitched and the warmer tones that appeared throughout the show. Looking back at these photos, the concert almost feels like a series of different little scenes rather than one continuous performance.
Concert Photos
I didn't take an enormous number of photos during this show, but these are the ones I liked enough to keep and share.
There's a bit of everything here, from wide shots of the stage to closer photos of Laufey, plus a few moments where the lighting really stood out.
A Few Notes...
I think Laufey's music is one of those things that's easy to underestimate until you hear it live.
On a playlist, songs like Valentine, Falling Behind, Promise, and From the Start can feel very intimate. But hearing an entire arena sing them back to her made them feel bigger without losing that intimacy.
The Manila show also had a really nice balance between the more upbeat songs and the quieter, more emotional ones. And I loved that the set didn't just rely on the biggest songs—there was enough room for covers, instrumental moments, and songs that allowed Laufey's musicianship to take center stage.
The encore was a particularly fitting way to end the night. Letter to My 13 Year Old Self already has that nostalgic, reflective feeling, and then she surprised everyone with a live debut of Winter Wonderland.
Looking back at these photos now, I think what I remember most isn't one particular big production moment. It's the overall feeling of the night: soft lighting, beautiful songs, and Laufey standing in the middle of a huge arena making the whole thing feel much smaller and more personal.
———
Work With MeInterested in collaborating with Trina PH? For brand partnerships, event coverage, travel features, sponsored content, and media opportunities, get in touch.
Leave a comment
Have a thought, question, or recommendation? I’d love to hear from you!