Tate McRae, a pop artist from Calgary, Canada, takes her new music around the globe on her second world tour, the “Miss Possessive Tour,” following her “THINK LATER” tour in 2024. Her fanbase, known as the “Tater Tots,” has highly anticipated her fresh industrial production inspired by several songs from her latest album, “So Close to What,” and experiencing McRae headline arenas for the first time.
McRae has always been quick on her feet as a competitive dancer — she starred as a contestant on season 13 of the Fox reality TV show “So You Think You Can Dance: The Next Generation.” Now, McRae stands out from other artists as she takes her moves on tour. When McRae began releasing original songs weekly on her YouTube channel “Create with Tate,” fans were even further blown away by her talent as a songwriter.
As a “Tater Tot” myself, seeing McRae for the first time in Cleveland this past August with opening artist Zara Larsson pumped me up to see her again in Pittsburgh with Alessi Rose. I was especially excited because she added Pittsburgh to her list of stops after her originally scheduled shows sold out in minutes.
McRae opened up her first act with a fiery introduction including pyrotechnics, flashing lights, fog and silhouettes of her backup dancers. Her tour title “Miss Possessive” appeared in red letters, then faded into black to reveal “Miss Possessive” herself in a black bodysuit and sunglasses. She hypnotized the crowd as the camera followed her around the stage, leaving fans screaming.
Following “Miss Possessive,” flames appeared behind McRae as she sang “No I’m not in love.” Playing this song after “Miss Possessive” was the perfect way to tell the story of moving on after being betrayed by a partner or friend’s questionable intentions.
During “2 Hands,” McRae brought out a cane as her prop — owning the stage with Sean Bankhead’s choreography. Bankhead, a director and choreographer known for his work in music videos, has assisted other successful artists like Beyonce, Missy Elliot and Britney Spears, who McRae often gets compared to. Most of McRae’s dances were created by Bankhead, including “greedy,” “exes” and “It’s ok I’m ok,” and have become so popular that they inspired their own TikTok trends.
Before ending her first act, McRae performed “guilty conscience” — a fan-favorite from her “THINK LATER” album. After this energetic performance, McRae took a seat in a chair, vulnerably singing “Purple lace bra” — a song where her audience can “really hear her,” not just see her. McRae soon crawled on the floor during a pre-recorded monologue saying, “So you came to my show to watch me, but do you really see me?”
“bloodonmyhands” didn’t need an appearance from the featured artist Flo Milli to get fans belting to the beat. McRae took selfies with fans, brought a phone on stage with her and ended the party song with fans in the front row blowing kisses at the camera.
During “Revolving door,” McRae met with her backup dancers holding LED doors, where she strutted down the runway as she sang the viral melody. Towards the end of the song, the lights flashed rainbow colors, representing the emotional chaos of being a young adult and finding yourself, all while pleasing the public. In the final lyrics of “Revolving door,” McRae sings “supposed to be an adult, but f— it / I need a minute.” McRae ended the song sitting in a single spotlight, shining on her with a one-minute timer on the screen behind her, spending a moment with the crowd that showed up for her — it was cinematic.
Growing up a dancer, McRae loves a little competition. She had fans go back to back in a screaming match to hear which section was loudest. After their blaring screams, McRae nonchalantly switched the atmosphere — “Anyways, have you guys heard my new single?” The room went dark blue — matching her outfit — and setting the mood for “TIT FOR TAT” — an alleged diss track towards ex-boyfriend, The Kid LAROI. McRae wrote the hit in Nashville in response to LAROI’s cry for her in “A COLD PLAY.”
McRae’s performance of “Just Keep Watching” was just as enticing as “TIT FOR TAT.” She was shot from all angles, so the crowd was left with no choice but to keep watching. The heat kept coming as she drove the show home with “Sports car,” and before fans blinked, confetti blasted center stage during the final goodbye to Pittsburgh with “greedy.”