When I was home for winter break I binged most of the documentaries that Netflix had on musical artists and live concert performances because I was missing going to concerts and I was looking for new music to listen to. This is my rating for each and whether they’re worth a watch.
Taylor Swift documentary -Miss Americana
This one was the first that I watched and it blew me away. It had been on my list to watch for so long and I really regret not getting to it sooner. You get a look at how Taylor has matured over the years. It focused a lot on how she’s using her title for good and working to mature her image. There were many clips of her writing songs for her Lover album which I found really cool because I feel like so few artists write their own songs anymore and I liked seeing how she worked. The documentary showed her as a genuine, quirky, well-spoken person and made me even more obsessed with her than I already am. 10/10
Ariana Grande concert -excuse me, I love you
This was mostly concert content interspersed with short clips of Ariana backstage or going about her day to day life. The concert parts of it were great and Ariana’s backup dancers were crazy amazing, but since the short backstage clips didn’t really add up it was hard to get a good look at Ariana as a person. In the clips she was shown as kind of goofy and really sweet but we didn’t see anything deeper. I wasn’t as impressed by this one as I wanted to be but I adore Ariana Grande so just the fact that this was her concert did make me enjoy it more than if it was anyone else. 7.5/10
Beyonce film -Homecoming
This one blew me away and it is the one that I still think about the most after the fact. This was a lot like Ariana Grande’s because it was mostly footage from her Coachella performance but there were backstage clips of Beyonce and the dancers preparing for Coachella interspersed. Unlike Ariana Grande’s, these clips added a lot more to the film because they showed Beyonce talking about what she was trying to accomplish with this performance and her recovery after having twins. I didn’t know a ton about Beyonce going into this but I love her personality now. This one was pretty long and it did drag a little in the middle but it was still a 9/10 for me.
Taylor Swift concert -Reputation Stadium Tour
This one had a different energy than the Ariana Grande and Beyonce ones(probably because of the music) but it was still really cool. This was from her Reputation tour and Reputation is my least favorite of her albums which took away from the experience for me a little. I think I would have enjoyed it more if it was a recording of any of her other concerts. However, she sang enough songs that I like (from this album or others) for me to still find it really fun to watch. I will watch Taylor Swift content any day. 6.5/10
Blackpink documentary -BLACKPINK: Light Up the Sky
I went into this one with very minimal knowledge of Blackpink or k-pop in general and I didn’t know any of their music so I was afraid I wouldn’t like it but I actually really did. It was more about k-pop as a genre and Blackpink’s journey to stardom than anything else and I’m fascinated by the way k-pop comes about so I thought it was really cool. A big part of it was the fashion and the culture of it all and I find that stuff very interesting. 7.5/10
Shawn Mendes documentary -In Wonder
This documentary was not as deep or interesting as the Taylor Swift one but I still thought that it was pretty good. I know very little about Shawn Mendes’ backstory so it was interesting to listen to him talk about his life and career. I didn’t love the parts with Camilla, I feel like she should have either been in more or less of the film because what they did show of Shawn and Camilla’s relationship felt weird, but I couldn’t tell if that was because of the relationship or the editing. My favorite part of this one was getting to see his family and his hometown. Overall, 7/10.
Lady Gaga documentary -Gaga: Five Foot Two
This one was kind of weird and I had the hardest time enjoying it. At first I couldn’t really tell what was happening, there wasn’t any real storyline and we just followed her life as she wrote her album and we heard about her plans for future performances and appearances. Eventually it shaped up and I realized that it was filmed during a time when she was trying to reinvent herself so it was interesting watching her diverge from her normal extravagance as an artist and instead settle into a more subdued version of herself. But I wasn’t a huge fan of her vibe. She has a loosely-strung rockstar persona that is a little offbeat and I think I just wasn’t expecting it. 5/10
Shawn Mendes concert -Shawn Mendes Live in Concert
This one also surprised me but in a good way, I loved it. Shawn’s stage presence and energy was so fun that it reminded me of One Direction concerts a lot; especially because the music is kind of similar. Even though I didn’t know all the songs he sang I still found it very refreshing and enjoyable. 10/10
Ben Platt concert -Ben Platt Live from Radio City Music Hall
I love Ben Platt as a person more than anything. Even though I originally found him when he was in Dear Evan Hansen, I still love his personality, style, and aesthetic. Even though I’m not the biggest fan of his music, he is, without a doubt, an amazing singer and it was so fun watching him dance and listening to the little anecdotes he told in between songs. However, the songs themselves were probably the parts I was least interested in. After hearing them live I was able to gain a new appreciation for one or two of them, but Ben Platt’s personality was by far the best part of the show. 8/10