Sweet goes well with Sour: Emma Rose's Release Show in Berlin
Friday, November 7th, 2025, at 07:00 pm in Berlin: Next to the famous Berghain, a line begins to form at the Kantine as music fans gather to celebrate the release of Emma Rose’s debut EP “Süß sauer” (Sweet and Sour): a collection of six songs about love, heartbreak, loneliness, and more.
07:55 pm, inside the venue: The club is getting packed (and warmer) as fans wait for the 23-year-old singer to hit the stage. Red lights are reflected by the shining disco ball hanging from the ceiling in the middle of the room, perfectly matching the heart-shaped balloons scattered throughout the location, as well as tonight’s dress code: something red!
08:10 pm: The two girls next to me whisper, “Do you also feel your heartbeat?” It’s go time! Emma Rose enters the stage alongside her band and kicks off the night with “Hauptsache easy” (main thing everything’s easy) from her freshly released EP “Süß sauer”, a pop-ish (and catchy) song in which she playfully sings about trying to stay easygoing (like waking up after a short night) and being chill just to be liked by someone, a situation many can relate to.
Following up, she performed “Liebe Süße Mädchen” (Lovely Sweet Girls), as well as the opening track of her EP, “Silvesternacht” (New Year‘s Eve), a rather melancholic song about loneliness. She then performed “Das Beste” (The Best), an older song that is not part of the EP but remains her most successful release so far.
It was difficult to pinpoint a fan-favorite moment, as Emma herself points out: fans were already singing along to every song, even the new ones. She didn’t even have to ask them to join in, like during her next song, “Heimweh” (Homesick). Born and raised in Bochum, the singer explains that she wrote this song about the feeling of “missing” as well as her hometown.
Jokingly asking the audience if there were any people from Bochum at the show tonight, she was met with loud screams, as friends and family had seemingly traveled to Berlin to support her.
The beautiful harmonies, highlighting her unique voice, are rewarded by the audience with a shower of flashlights. Another highlight of the show was her performance of “Miau Miau”, a song about self-doubt featuring ironic and metaphorical lyrics with witty lines, such as “I’m only riding on my broomstick, no traffic in the sky.” (With “traffic“ or “Verkehr” being a synonym for sex in German.) The track evokes songs such as “Juno” or “House Tour” by Sabrina Carpenter, yet in a uniquely authentic way. Once again, her funny personality shone through as Emma asked the audience to dance along “like jellyfish” or “older women in the disco” during the song’s outro.
A little “get down and once the beat drops everyone jumps” moment during her performance of “Männergrippe” (Man Flu) hyped the crowd up once again before she sang “Süß sauer” (Sweet and sour), the closing as well as title track of her EP, and probably the funniest moment of the night. During the song’s outro, she asks the audience to sing along. Something very simple, very catchy: just some “La La La’s.”
However, when Emma asks the audience to sing along as if they were at the Ballermann (a famous party area on the beach in Mallorca known for cheap drinks, loud music, and German tourists), rowdy chanting rings out throughout the club. Moments later, the polar opposite happens: she asks the audience to sing as if they were in a choir, and they obediently follow.
9:05 pm: Emma returns to the stage for an encore, starting with “Baby,” which she follows up with a love song dedicated to her fans: a cover of “Best Part” by Daniel Caesar and H.E.R. remixed with “Silvesternacht,” where she is able to show off the jazz influences sprinkled throughout her discography. Last but certainly not least, she rewards the crowd with a second round of “Das Beste” (The Best) before leaving the stage and heading to the merch stand to greet fans.
Make sure to check out Emma Rose's newest EP here:
Want to see more of Emma's release show? Here are all the pictures:
REVIEW BY
Andy
(Live) music is one of my biggest passions, which is why I enjoy exploring pop culture in my writings. From analyzing albums to reviewing concerts. I'm especially interested in fandom culture, which often comes through in my work.
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