5SOS MAKE SURE ‘EVERYONE’S A STAR’ IN MANCHESTER

LIVE REVIEW | 5 SECONDS OF SUMMER | CO-OP LIVE ARENA, MANCHESTER | 4th April 2026 by Bella Proudfoot

Having just wrapped up the UK leg of the ‘Everyone’s a Star’ tour in Cardiff, I am yet to find myself able to shake those post-gig blues. After a two-year touring hiatus, 5 Seconds of Summer (5SOS) fans physically couldn’t wait any longer, and these shows to come fast enough. Beginning in Belfast then moving on to London and Birmingham, the day had finally come where the boys arrived in Manchester, greeted with a cold, grey Saturday in yellow weather-warning winds.

Despite unnerving conditions outside, the arena was bustling with fans from the early hours, some even starting the queue the night before. Fans from near and far excitedly hunt for a decent spot in line, and those lucky VIP-ers eagerly anticipating the intimate soundcheck soon to come.

As the day goes on and the countdown truly begins, the arena site gets busier and giddier. 5SOS opening act, Haiden Henderson, hosts a free pop-up nearby for fans to meet up and listen to some acoustic performances, and the Manchester Bee Network begins to flood. Both outside and inside the arena jam-packed with concert-goers struggling to contain themselves, Co-Op Live is now officially home to a hysterical crowd of 20,000 people. Finally, out the hood of a limousine and through a cloud of fog 5SOS emerge centre stage, met with complete pandemonium before they even strum a chord.

Sadly, the Co-Op Live curse continued – with the venue having been previously plagued with poor reviews from unhappy concert goers due to several delays in its grand opening, last-minute concert postponements, technical issues, car parking complaints and major building malfunctions. Sadly, the 5SOS show was no exception. With the opening of a new venue, much less an arena, there are due to be some teething issues, we can’t deny that, it’s just a shame that such a remarkable show got off to such an unfortunate start.

Each support artist’s set was unfortunately cut short due to ‘technical difficulties’, multiple attendees passed out in the crowd before the show had even begun, and most infuriatingly, the sound desk suffered major audio malfunctions. During 5SOS’s first song, aptly titled ‘I’M NOT OK’, the audio cuts in and out, and the only noise to be heard was a backing track and the countless sighs of fed-up fans. These malfunctions sadly continued throughout the entirety of their second song: ‘NO.1 OBSESSION’. The crowd now, understandably, begins to worry over the fate of this show.

Luckily, the ever devoted and undyingly passionate 5SOS crowd barely hesitated to continue roaring the lyrics on the band’s behalf while the stage continued to emit near silence. The boys took this time to jokingly(?) express their annoyance at the situation. Frontman Luke Hemmings paced the stage anxiously, scowling and shaking his arms while equally attempting to uphold morale, whilst drummer Ashton Irwin yelled “WHAT THE FUCK” into the cameras projecting to the stage-side monitors. After one anxiety-inducing minute that seemed to last a lifetime (I really felt for the tech guys), music began bellowing through the speakers once again, and the crowd goes wild.

With the show being split up into acts, we now embarked on part one: ‘The Peak’. The band thankfully restarts and successfully finishes‘NO.1 OBSESSION’, accompanied by confetti cannons, stunning on-screen graphics and thousands of screaming fans.

Thankfully, the rest of the set(s) also went off without a hitch, and to say they were impressive would be one hell of an understatement. It was genuinely hard to believe the band hadn’t toured in over two years; to watch, it was as if they’d never stopped. Each member performing full power in perfect harmony with each other and bouncing off the thousands of screams from beyond.

The second act, ‘The Fall’, begins after a series of montages play on-screen in true TMZ style, later diverting into a mockumentary, where each of the boys reflects on the ‘downfall’ of 5SOS. Referring, of course, to their decline in popularity after an infamously controversial Rolling Stone article was published in 2015, only a year after their (now platinum) debut album was released and mere months after their second.

The light-heartedness and jokiness continue throughout the act, between stellar performances of ‘Istillfeelthesame’ and ‘Easier’, the boys conduct a PowerPoint presentation of what it means to make a successful boy band and throw 5SOS blow-up dolls, each sporting the likeness of each band member, into the VIP pit while skipping and singing around the stage.

During the third and fourth acts, ‘The Yearning’ and ‘The Breakup’, screens continue to play the 5SOS mockumentary. The band discusses breaking up and their respective solo careers, then go on to perform the rest of the act with each member taking turns to stand alone on the front of the stage, absorbing the love from the arena, each having their own moment to shine.

Hemmings addresses the crowd several times throughout the act, joking how the crowd are a “bunch of goddamn lunatics” and expressing their fondness for Manchester itself, even opening a slide from their PowerPoint titled ‘5SOS Manchester Take-Over’ and making references to the ManCity game that just happened (in the Etihad Stadium) next door and a (groundbreaking) reference to Oasis, joking that they’re Gallagher related. The boys play oldie goldies such as ‘She’s Kinda Hot’ (resentfully, only a shortened version) before wrapping up and moving onto their fifth act.

We are now introduced to their next sketch, ‘Boyband of the Year’. They award themselves with a purposeful, obnoxious trophy and give hyperbolic acceptance speeches. At this point, it’s fair to say they’re living up to their unserious (comedic) reputation. Act V: ‘The Rise of 5SOS’ begins, and the boys address the crowd once more, thanking them for the continuous, undying support over the years with a comedically humble yet oddly sincere “We’re old as fuck! Thanks for still having us”.

The stage is stripped back, the lights are simple, nothing but darkness and a few spotlights light the room before the crowd takes it upon themselves to light it themselves as the boys go acoustic for the gut-wrenching classic, ‘Amnesia’. A genuinely touching moment in what was otherwise an evening of jokes and post-punk silliness, the crowd all in perfect sync while tears are shed and iPhone torches seemed to fill the room. A real sense of camaraderie and love engulfed the arena, and for a moment, we were all teenagers transported back to 2014.

Moving swiftly onto the latter segment of the show and entering act six, ‘The Beginning’, is plastered on screens as the boys break out into a medley of their earlier hits. ‘English Love Affair’, a particular 5SOS staple of a song that soundtracked endless adolescences, could’ve just about caused an earthquake from the level of energy pulsating from the crowd.

The closer the show seemed to draw to a close, the more powerful the music became; it was evident throughout each act that the band were feeding more and more off the energy exchanged with the fans. No notes missed, powerhouse vocals and incredibly commanding artistry, all leading up to the no.1 5SOS anthem and their breakout song ‘She Looks So Perfect’.

The crowd, now in absolute mayhem, were tricked with a classic ‘thank you, good night’ before a pre-encore video appeared on screen. Hemmings sits in the video and speaks candidly:

“Every great story has a final chapter”

5SOS return to the stage after a fake-out exit, bursting in and immediately playing the highly anticipated ‘Yungblood’. Up until the final chord, the crowd were yet to show signs of calming down anytime soon. An almost celebratory feeling erupt in the air, and a grandiose performance draws an end to one hell of an evening. It’s safe to say this show exceeded any and all expectations, and whatever ‘final chapter’ Hemmings referred to doesn’t seem to be coming anytime soon after what seemed like the ‘comeback’ of the century.