MIKA GIGS

Setlist overview 

The main element of every concert is naturally the setlist which refers to the collection of songs planned for the gig including song intros as well as transitions between songs needed to change the atmosphere. In addition to the fundamental songs the setlist often includes "treasures" and after releasing a new album preferably a generous amount of new music. Song intros can include piano playing, considered speeches, dramatic or funny scenes, even little plays. Fundamentals are classics that create the foundation. Several songs from the first three albums have stayed on the setlist probably because they represent the common factor between different countries and also because they are expected by big crowds especially at festivals. Classic newer songs like Tiny Love or C'est la vie can be seen "fundamentals" as well. 

Treasures are songs that make each gig or tour different compared to other gigs and tours and can make any concert particularly attractive to those who already know Mika's music well. As an example, on the Apocalypse Calypso setlist Feels Like Fire felt a treasure and performing an acoustic or orchestra version of the song one day would make it a rare jewel, a pure gem. If the circumstances are calm enough, adding Over My Shoulder to the setlist can alone make any gig an exceptional memory. Performing new music during big album tours makes the latest songs alive and often defines the audience favourites. For example, the main Apocalypse Calypso setlist included an abundant amount of new songs from Que ta tête fleurisse toujours. Only rare songs end up on the regular setlist so getting recently released, sometimes even unreleased, new music on the setlist is always something to cherish. The songs we have heard only during album tours feel now big treasures, everyone who saw them performed live that time can see themselves extremely lucky.

For this overview I went through my old gig summaries and paper lists from past concerts. One of my most listened Mika song has always been Ring Ring from Life In Cartoon Motion and makes me still happy to think I managed to hear it live twice in 2008. During early years some covers were added on the setlist and in London February 2008 we heard Missionary Man and at Parc des Princes July 2008 Just Can't Get Enough. Sweet Dreams was performed occasionally, the breathtaking Barbara cover La Solitude was on the setlist in Luxembourg in 2010. Later covers have been rare but for example at Cheltenham Jazz Festival Mika and Nomfundo Moh performed One More Dance, originally performed by Harry Belafonte and Miriam Makeba. Photos I chose for this summary are all taken in Cheltenham in 2023.

During the Songs For Sorrow Acoustic Tour in 2009 the setlist included all the songs from the EP: Blue Eyes, Lady Jane, Lonely Alcoholic and Toy Boy and also songs like Good Gone Girl, Blame It On The Girls and Rain from the upcoming second album. Later that summer We Are Golden and Dr John were added to the setlist. During the 2009 North America Tour we heard even songs like Pick Up Off The Floor and One Foot Boy, and By The Time was performed in special circumstances at Union Chapel, none of those three songs having a place on the final Imaginarium Tour setlist. In summer 2010 Mika occasionally performed his new film soundtrack song Kick-Ass. 

For the Imaginarium arena Tour the structure of the show was drastically changed changing the song order and adding big show elements. The legendary astronaut intro and news scene opened the show with Relax. Rain, which originally opened the Imaginarium show with a school themed intro, was performed later during the show with an extremely theatrical nightmare style scene. Any Other World from Life In Cartoon Motion got an impressive, classy performance and I appreciate how that atmosphere was protected for the 2024 Apocalypse Calypso version with stunning simple flower animations. The Imaginarium Arena setlist example below is from Marseille April 2010. I See You is my favourite song from the second album but hasn't been on the setlist after the album tour. We Are Golden, Toy Boy and Rain have stayed on the setlist at least occasionally and I often wish to hear Dr John again because I think it could work well with festival audiences. 

In 2011 the festival setlist included Mika's new French songs Elle Me dit and Karen and the European Origin Of Love Tour gig in London in 2012 had Un Soleil Mal Luné as an opening song. From the new album the European tour included Celebrate, Underwater, Lola, Stardust, Popular Song, Only Love You When I'm Drunk and obviously the title song Origin Of Love. In Paris we heard Heroes, and Step With Me was performed a few times. Unfortunately I never managed to hear my big favourite Kids live even though it was practised during rehearsals. It's incredible to think how Underwater became such a fundamental Mika song, how Origin has evolved into a gorgeous, strong anthem and Heroes a classic symphonic song. 

The Intimate Evening Tour in North America in 2013 was a dream come true in every possible way and is still literally the most intimate tour we have ever seen. The concept was special and that way every single - also regular - song felt a special treasure but the setlist also included totally unique songs like Only Lonely Man, Hia Leah and Century Man and even some original China Boy parts in Celebrate. I added below the setlist from Solana Beach March 2013 and as a memorable detail the gig included the a cappella ending for Happy Ending for the first ever time even though for some reason the song itself wasn't written on the original setlist. After more than ten years I obviously can't be sure about the exact order of the songs and if every song on the list was eventually performed, these are just examples.

In February 2015 Mika did his first ever symphonic concerts in Montreal, Canada. The symphonic setlist included three new songs from his upcoming album No Place In Heaven: Last Party, Good Guys and Ordinary Man. During the spring and summer 2015 we heard also songs like Good Wife and Boum Boum Boum and the official Heaven Tour was opened with the title song No Place In Heaven and the setlist included also Talk About You and the big audience favourite Promiseland which surprisingly was only an additional song on the album. At some gigs we heard also Staring At The Sun, Hurts and L'amour and in Asia also songs like Porcelain - which years later feels a huge treasure -  and older songs My Interpretation and Lonely Alcoholic. At 2016 summer gigs the setlist changed a little bit each night and for example in Italy we heard Italian favourites Beautiful Disaster, Hurts and Stardust with Italian additions. 

The Heaven Tour setlist example is from Luxembourg September 2015. The venue was small and intimate and hearing songs like No Place In Heaven, Good Wife and Promiseland in circumstances like that was an exciting moment. Last Party and Good Guys that we originally learnt to know through symphonic performances have stayed my biggest personal favourites from the fourth album. Last Party is luckily a part of the symphonic setlist and Good Guys has been a popular festival song and has grown and become a meaningful personal story. Talk About You had a successful come-back on the Apocalypse Calypso setlist and in Italy we still occasionally hear Stardust and in France Boum Boum Boum. 

In 2019 the first single from the new album was Ice Cream and later that summer Mika performed an orchestra version of Tiny Love in Lajatico, Italy, which was an incredible way to hear the song for the first time. The Tiny Love Tiny Tour started in Brooklyn in September and in addition to Ice Cream and Tiny Love the setlist included Sanremo, Dear Jealousy, Blue, Tomorrow and Stay high from the album My Name Is Michael Holbrook which was released in the beginning of October. 

During the main album tour, officially called the Revelation Tour, we also heard Paloma and Platform Ballerinas. The Revelation setlist below is from Auckland, New Zealand. Because the venue had beautiful acoustics we heard Over My Shoulder in the end as a huge treasure. Obviously the setlist was extremely generous already before that and hearing any of the rare My Name Is Michael Holbrook songs now would be a special treat. In Auckland the venue was tiny and there were no show elements on stage but at big venues the piano going high towards the ceiling and the giant red heart coming out of it created a major party moment at the end.

After the pandemic and during the 2022 For The Rite Of Spring North America Tour two new songs, Yo-Yo and Modern Times were added to the setlist. During the summer we heard Mika's new beautiful film soundtrack song Who's Gonna Love Me Now, naturally a huge treasure. In 2023 and during the May Your Head Always Bloom Tour I personally found the acoustic part of Yo-Yo and Tiny Love and the occasionally added Good Guys and Boum Boum Boum as huge, clear and distinctive highlights along with the big classics like Underwater and Love Today that keep their value every time. The final Love Today was performed with the amazing and theatrical tiger head and the green cape going round and round. After the release of the new French album Que ta tête fleurisse toujours the main album tour Apocalypse Calypso offered a wonderfully generous setlist with seven songs from the new album, an example from the first gig of the tour below. 

In the very end I wanted to give an example of Mika's symphonic setlist, this one is from Orange 2024. I find orchestra concerts the most amazing part of Mika's repertoire, the concept simply highlights his talent and skills as a performing artist in an extraordinary way. The voice, putting his whole heart and soul in the performances, the stunning circumstances. Symphonic Heroes makes me feel my mind separates from my body - like it could actually be possible to move to another dimension - and experiences like that are rare in life. 

The concept for a symphonic gig is totally different compared to regular gigs so the structure of the setlist needs to be and can be totally different as well. There's less need for big classic songs because in symphonic circumstances every song becomes huge and important. For example Boum Boum Boum is usually playful but with an orchestra impressive and truly dramatic. The energetic songs are often saved in the end which keeps the crowd organised until the very end and the final party when it's officially allowed to stand up and dance. I'm always grateful for that order because with a more chaotic order the amazing opportunity would be wasted. In Orange my biggest favourites were Heroes, I Went To Hell Last Night, Je sais que je t’aime, Blue, Over My Shoulder, Relax, C'est la vie and Jane Birkin, just to mention a few. What a stunning experience it was. 

Some songs appear on the setlist each tour but get fresh arrangements and added details and have stayed relevant and grown with new tones each era. Theatrical elements are built around the songs and the full show is always revealed only the moment  it really happens, every gig has numerous considered and some spontaneous details that are not written on the setlist. One of my favourite rituals lately has been the ending Yo-Yo dance where everyone on stage gathers around Mika to do an energetic small good bye dance. I find this tiny closing ceremony surprisingly important because it makes the situation that could be sad actually something cheerful, telling the audience: "see you next time".