Angèle

On December 2, 2022, Angèle opened the first of her two evenings at Plenitude Arena as part of the Nonante-Cinq Tour. A sold-out crowd, a stunning production, a sprained ankle and still two full hours of show: a night that stands as one of the Belgian singer’s most defining performances in France.

:Angèle at Plenitude Arena: Two Nights, 70,000 Fans and a Figure-Eight in the Sky

From the Trianon to Plenitude Arena: The rise og a Belgian prodigy

Trianon, Olympia, Zénith, Accor Arena, and now Plenitude Arena. Much like Ninho a few months earlier, Angèle’s progression through French venues follows an undeniable logic. In December 2022, the singer from Uccle stepped inside Europe’s largest indoor venue for the first time, bringing her French tour to a close. And it was not one night but two, on December 2 and 3, both completely sold out.

© Apolline Cornuet

Named the most-streamed female artist in France on Spotify in 2022, Angèle carried the weight of enormous expectation. Plenitude Arena, which hosts the world’s biggest tours year after year, was facing for the first time a French-speaking artist filling the venue on two consecutive nights. A powerful statement for a singer whose popularity had long since spread well beyond Belgium’s borders. Together, the two concerts brought over 70,000 spectators to Plenitude Arena in a single weekend, and were filmed for later broadcast.

A 95 rollercoaster above the Plenitude Arena stage

The staging deployed that evening at Plenitude Arena was impossible to ignore. The centrepiece: a monumental structure shaped like a figure-eight representing the number 95, suspended above the stage as a direct reference to the album Nonante-Cinq. An installation built to match the venue, designed to fill Plenitude Arena’s vast space from floor to ceiling. On stage, Angèle was backed by around twenty dancers, a significantly larger ensemble than on the tour’s usual dates, specifically scaled up for these two Parisian nights. The production, developed by the artist herself alongside the teams at Saïmiri and Auguri Productions, drew admiration from spectators and observers alike. Add to that lighting effects, confetti and a staging approach that turned every track into a living tableau. The result: a show that many in attendance described as one of the most impressive they had ever seen in that venue.

Plus de sens to open, balance ton quoi to close : a setlist with no dead time

It was with Plus de sens that Angèle opened proceedings at exactly 9 PM, following an opening set from Bianca Costa. The show ran for two hours, from 9 PM to 11 PM, working through 25 tracks drawn from both albums. The December 2 setlist, as documented on setlist.fm, covered the core of Nonante-Cinq and Brol: after Plus de sens came Tu me regardes, La loi de Murphy, Pensées positives, Oui ou non, Tout oublier, On s’habitue, Profite, Ta reine, Perdus, Les matins, then tracks from Brol including Je veux tes yeux, Jalousie and Balance ton quoi, which closed the show. The setlist also included Taxi, Flemme, Libre medley and a cover of Dua Lipa’s Fever mid-set.

© Apolline Cornuet

Between songs, Angèle took time to connect with the crowd, speaking openly about her sexuality, the writing of the album, her hometown, and the fact that her parents were in the audience that night. That intimacy was as much a part of the show’s identity as the staging itself. One note from the evening: the singer landed badly after a jump and sprained her ankle, but performed through to the end without interruption.

Nonante-cinq platinium in three weeks: Angèle’s undisputed reign

To understand what these two nights at Plenitude Arena meant for Angèle’s career, the numbers say it clearly. Her album Nonante-Cinq, released on December 3, 2021, was certified platinum in just three weeks. She had established herself as the most-streamed French-speaking female artist of the year in France on Spotify in 2022. Her debut album Brol had already earned her a Victoire de la Musique in 2020 for Concert of the Year. Raised in a Brussels family of artists and trained in jazz before breaking through with La thune, Je veux tes yeux and Tout oublier, Angèle had carved out in a matter of years a musical space entirely her own, sitting at the crossroads of pop, disco and French chanson. The Nonante-Cinq Tour, launched in April 2022, spanned 62 dates across France, Belgium, Switzerland, Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom. The Plenitude Arena nights were its Parisian peak.

A pre-birthday eve Plenitude Arena will not forget

There was something particular about December 2: Angèle was turning 27 the very next day, and her fans knew it. A celebratory atmosphere took hold from the first minutes at Plenitude Arena, carried by a singer visibly overwhelmed with emotion.

© Apolline Cornuet

This concert will remain in Plenitude Arena’s history as one of the rare occasions when a French-speaking artist filled the venue on two consecutive nights, turning a December weekend into a major cultural moment. Angèle’s connection with her audience, and her willingness to speak honestly between every song, gave these evenings a rare quality: a concert that felt as much like a conversation as a performance.