The crowd goes mild for TikTok sensation Benson Boone

November 13, 2026 — 11:54amMUSICBenson Boone | Wanted Man Tour ★★Rod Laver Arena, November 12For up to $200 a ticket, Benson Boone’s performance could’ve stayed on TikTok.Benson Boone (with his trademark ’stache) performing at Rod Laver Arena on Thursday night. Richard CliffordDrawing a crowd that looked less like a fan base and more like a census sample, the American heartthrob proved the one-hit wonder can succeed, but shouldn’t.Night one at Melbourne’s Rod Laver Arena – the second Australian city on the final leg of the Wanted Man Tour – saw Boone at his most Aussie self as he swapped “American” for “Australian” in Young American Heart.Boone proved his Australian credentials through a disdain for flies and his newfound passion for surfing, accompanied by a spirited onstage demonstration.“I look like everybody else here,” Boone exclaimed, not without crediting his signature ’stache.Boone’s vocals and stamina did the heavy lifting during the gig.Richard CliffordAs middle-aged mums flooded the stands – some decked out in matching mummy-daughter denim, some flying solo – the pop star might have been wondering if he had made it, or if those shirtless album photos were the right call.At 24, Boone is known for backflips and Beautiful Things, yet his lesser-known ballads didn’t hit the right note. Even after a two-minute spoken-word monologue introducing the maternal influence behind his 2025 single Momma Song, the crowd still went mild.House lights exposed rows of stony-faced punters for the majority of the show, save for a handful of pre-teens on their feet in the nosebleed seats. Across an arena of uninterested fans, a passionate minority attempted the classic “sea of lights” with their phone torches to no avail.The jarring shift in crowd engagement between Boone’s TikTok-viral triple threat (Beautiful Things, Mystical Magical, Cry) and his sombre piano melodies proved that social media can be a dangerous catalyst for musical careers.The crowd looked more like a census sample and less like a fan base.Richard CliffordCaught in the TikTok-to-superstar pipeline, emerging artists seem to overcompensate in a bid for an audience’s attention. In Boone’s case, the visuals felt more like a primary-school project than a professional production – an amateurish mess of animated fireworks and twisting strobes.Off-script moments fared little better. Prompted by a fan’s homemade sign, Boone paused to workshop baby names with a mum-to-be who revealed he was only the third person to know she was pregnant. The singer promised an answer by the end of the show before promptly forgetting.Despite the lacklustre wardrobe — the plain denim a far cry from his signature sequined bodysuits — Boone’s vocals and stamina did the heavy lifting. Confetti cannons and sporadic stage pyrotechnics handled the rest, keeping eyes up front even when the crowd wasn’t singing along.The seven backflips almost saved the day.Reviewed by Eliza WesthusingThe Booklist is a weekly newsletter for book lovers from Jason Steger. Get it delivered every Friday.From our partners