This Saturday, University Union held a free, private Zoom concert for Syracuse University students in honor of our fallen 2020 Mayfest. Breakout sensation King Princess, a 21-year-old music industry native from Brooklyn, performed for the camera from the edge of what looked like a very comfortable bed, with a scenic Hawaiian backdrop behind her. Much like everything else going on, there was nothing orthodox about this Zoom concert, but then again, not much is orthodox about King Princess either.

“If I were to have actually played Syracuse at a concert, I would’ve been all over the place,” she told her virtual onlookers, followed by a list of instruments she would have destroyed. “I would’ve taken my titties out.”

Honestly, her alternative was just as good. “I hope you’re all snuggled up.” King Princess said. “Take it easy, roll a blunt, have some fun.” Talk about a cheap queen’s dream.

King Princess played soulful song after soulful song with the same ease most people breathe with. Tapping her classic checkered slip-on Vans against the wood floor as she sang her opening song, “Isabel’s Moment”, the strap of her oversized overalls hung off her shoulder. After that, most of the concert was performed on an acoustic guitar she got from her neighbor. Upper West Siders got a special shout out when she performed, you guessed it, “Upper West Side.”

Of the many things an audience might miss out on in a Zoom concert, King Princess’ quippy humor and unapologetic commentary was not one of them. When she wasn’t joking about the inherent awkwardness of performing to an audience who couldn’t cheer for her, she was addressing her girlfriend, Quinn, who could occasionally be heard laughing behind the camera. “It’s really weird telling jokes to yourself,” she remarked, “[Quinn is] laughing, so I’m telling jokes to you.” For reference, it’s Quinn as in Quinn Wilson, Lizzo’s creative director… as if King Princess needed to get any cooler.

While she sang “Homegirl,” a slower song she confessed to writing during a hangover, the breeze through the open door blew a sheet of paper on the ground in time with the music, like it knew everyone watching was in desperate need of this virtual escape. From her rock anthems like “Ohio”, to covers of “Slide Away” by Miley Cyrus (or as she called her, “Pipes Ray Cyrus”), each performance had the same air of cool as that one friend who can find the guitar at every party, only ten times more talented.

Before rocking out to “Ohio” on her knees on the bed, she noted that it’s an “odd song to play on an acoustic guitar.” Your Highness, there’s no such thing as an odd choice anymore. King Princess closed out her set with “1950”, her biggest hit, clocking in a monstrous 346,000,000+ streams on Spotify. Even DJ’s got a special shout out before the closer. “I’m sure you’ve drunkenly sang this song in your sorority. Or secret society. Or gender-fluid social house… You may have been in DJs getting over a man, probably, or a woman.” Who told her? The heart-wrenching ballad permeated the technical divide, a perfect closer to her emotional-punch-packing set list.

After “1950”, King Princess stripped off the already sheer veil of performer to level with the audience. She came close, speaking directly into the camera, and apologized for not being there in person. Much like the messages she sends through her songs, while she addressed the sadness of the current state of things (quarantine, in case you forgot), she still closed out with a message of hope. In case you needed a reminder that you can get through this, here’s a royal decree from the royal King Princess herself. “You gotta figure out what makes you happy and you just gotta do it every day. We’ve just been watching TV and playing Switch, and that’s enough.”

Quarantine Can’t Stop the Reign of King Princess