Sofia Isella / Electric Ballroom / London
Like many, I first came across Sofia Isella, when I saw her incredible performance of the track The Doll People on YouTube. A powerful and emotional track, her style and persona shine through.
So I was over the moon to be lucky enough to be heading for London’s Electric Ballroom in Camden to see her in her first London headline show, fresh from her appearances at the Reading / Leeds festival. It is of course, a complete sell out and as I arrive from the Camden Town tube station there is a sea of excitable young fans here already waiting with bated breathe to get in and to the barrier at the front. There is a real buzz and energy around the place even before the doors open, and you have the feeling you’re in for something special.
First up in support is Nxdia, an alt-pop singer/songwriter, born in Heliopolis in Egypt, before moving to Manchester aged eight. Having released the EP “In the Flesh” in 2023 and the single She Likes a Boy, Nxdia released her debut album “I Promise No One's Watching” in June 2025 and by August it had amassed over 100 million streams on Spotify.
Performing alone on stage, with guitar and backing track, Nxdia was nothing short of incredible. Her vocals were powerful and delivered crisp, clean tones throughout. With a lively and bubbly persona, she was at ease with the crowd and loved every second of the interactions with the audience, beaming as the crowd sung along to hits such as She Likes a Boy. Indeed, her set had the whole crowd bouncing right from the off, and you’d be excused for thinking this was the headline set !
Nxdia is a real talent.
Sofia Isella is an American singer-songwriter who initially developed popularity on TikTok she has grown in stature and has supported the likes of Melanie Martinez, Tom Odell, Taylor Swift, and Glass Animals. Isella's style incorporates elements of alternative, gothic, and indie music and frequently focuses on themes of women's empowerment. She released her debut EP “I’m Not Yours” in 2020, followed by “I Can Be Your Mother” and 2025’s EP “I'm camera”
Hitting the stage in baggy ripped jeans and sweatshirt to huge cheers and screams she starts the set with Hit Gum. Unfortunately the sound system seems to want to put a dampener on the night, with muffled vocals allowing crowd chatter to become noticeable. But Sofia rises above the initial sound issues and delivers a powerful, emotional performance packed with theatrical magic. Throughout the set, Sofa switches between performing with guitar and violin switching seamlessly between guitar and violin, giving a performance for the ages. A theatrical performance, she uses ody movement so effectively to convey a range of emotions, and the young crowd respond to her screaming every lyric right back at her. Its not soo much a performance for the crowd, as event you are part of. Sofia creates a special atmosphere, and an environment that young women feel safe in.
At one point Sofia is joined by Paris Paloma on stage to the delight of the crowd, and standing near the back, I see a sea of phone screens as everyone tries to capture the moment to re-live again and again.
Highlights are of course the big hits Everybody Supports Women and The Doll People which is delivered with style and panache, and the sets closes fittingly with I Looked the Future in the Eyes, It's Mine, an almost rallying cry to the crowd to embrace the world around them and make it their own, as the scores of happy, contented fans dispersed into the London night.
Sofia Isella is an incredible performer. Her lyrics are emotive and delivered with a powerful vocal style and theatrical persona that brings the words to life in the most engaging way. A bright future awaits …. I am absolutely sure about that !
Setlist
Hot Gum
Cacao and Cocaine
Josephine
Man Made
Muse
Dog’s Dinner
All of Human Knowledge Made Us Dumb
Numbers 31:17-18
Crowd Caffeine
Everybody Supports Women
Us & Pigs
Labour
The Doll People
Sex Concept
Orchestrated, Wet, Verboten
I Looked the Future in the Eyes, It's Mine
