In the words of Adele herself: “Take me by the hand while we do what lovers do.” And for a couple who attended the musician’s One Night Only performance atop Los Angeles’ Griffith Observatory, they did exactly that.
Throughout Adele’s two-hour One Night Only TV special—her first live performance in six years—a couple took the 33-year-old’s lyrics quite literally, as they got engaged at the base of her stage.
The soon-to-be viral video sees a man proposing to his girlfriend in what she believes is a romantically, low-lit area reserved for herself and her partner. However, it’s only when she accepts his proposal that the stage lights turn on and Adele appears, cheering for the couple.
The newly proposed-to woman, who is visibly (and understandably) taken aback, is then directed toward the celebrity-filled crowd where she gets another shock when seated next to Lizzo. She begins to realise that she is amongst a plethora of famous faces who attended the event, rumoured to include Oprah Winfrey, Gabrielle Union, Sarah Paulson, Melissa McCarthy, Leonardo DiCaprio, Seth Rogen, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Drake, Selena Gomez and Lizzo, of course.
As for the rest of Adele’s One Night Only special, fans were treated to one of the 33-year-old musician’s best live performances to date. Starting the show with her smash hit single “Hello”, she then performed other classics like “Someone Like You”, “When We Were Young”, “Make You Feel My Love”, “Rolling In The Deep” and “Skyfall”.
However, fans were also treated to the first live performance of “Easy On Me”, and two new songs from her upcoming album, “I Drink Wine” and “Hold On”.
But what happened during Adele’s One Night Only tell-all interview with Oprah? Scroll on for the biggest revelations from their chat.
Adele explained the meaning behind her hit song “Hello” and new hit “Hold On”
After her hour-long live performance, Adele fans were treated to even more onscreen moments with the musician. Taking to the infamous rose garden, she sat down with Oprah Winfrey for an “in-depth, wholesome explanation to the last six years of her life”. And yes, it was exactly that.
First, Adele spoke of the power of her new song “Hold On”. She explained to Oprah that its “brutually honest” lyrics were about her friends who supported her at her lowest point, amid her split from Simon Konecki.
She opened up about how her friends told her those two words, “Hold On”, while she was “struggling” through the “process of divorce. The process of being a single parent. The process of not seeing your child every single day wasn’t really a plan I had when I became a mum.”
“So many people know what I’m talking about,” Adele said. “I just felt like not doing it anymore… My feet hurt walking through all of that concrete.”
But when speaking of her most famous songs, Adele and Oprah discussed the monumental success of her hit single “Hello”. When asked what it represents to her, Adele explained that “the show is the first time that I’m singing it from where I am now”, which we presume means from her life now, post-divorce and settling into her new, happier life.
“When I wrote it, it was a real ode to little me, older me, all of these things,” she told Oprah. “It’s just a song about like, ‘I’m still here.’ Like, ‘Hi, I’m still here, I still exist in every aspect of my life.’”
It was her first time performing in front of her son, Angelo
While this didn’t take place during her chat with Oprah, this adorable moment is worth noting. During the one-hour concert, Adele revealed that it wasn’t only the first time she had performed some of her new songs, but it was also the first time her nine-year-old son Angelo had seen her live onstage.
“This is the first time that my son has ever seen me perform,” she said, fighting back tears.
“It’s the absolute honour of my life, baby, to have you here tonight. And you look so beautiful, and so handsome and smart.”
Excuse us while we weep.
She spoke openly about her new relationship with Rich Paul
Continuing the sweet moments, Oprah then opened up the discussion to Adele’s partner, American sports agent Rich Paul who was present at the interview.
When discussing his impact on her life, she revealed that this relationship is the “first time she has actually been in love and also loved herself.”
Adele opens up about the world’s negative reaction to her weight loss
Not long after, the conversation turned toward her recent transformation and how the world reacted to a personal and private decision between herself and her body.
When discussing how some fans had a negative reaction to her weight loss, Adele explained that she feels it’s not her responsibility to validate how others feel about their bodies.
“I’m not shocked or even fazed by it,” she said. “Because my body has been objectified my entire career.”
“I was body positive then and I’m body positive now,” she said. “It’s not my job to validate how people feel about their bodies. I feel bad that it’s made anyone feel horrible about themselves, but that’s not my job.”
The 15-time Grammy winner then discussed the factors that unintentionally lead to her sudden body transformation.
“Once I realised that I had a lot of work to do on myself, I stopped drinking and I started working out a lot… to keep me sort of centred.”
After confronting her “terrifying anxiety attacks” that she endured after her marriage ended, she explained that she learned she “didn’t have any anxiety” whenever she was at the gym with her trainer. So naturally, she chose to increase her time spent working out as a result.
“It became my time,” she said. “Me having a plan every day… having these sort of pins in my day, helped me keep myself together.”
And now? Well, apparently she has a fairly mean left hook. Explaining that she doesn’t mind if her weight fluctuates, Adele revealed that her muscle memory for lifting weights is a skill set she never wants to lose.
Revealing that she could deadlift 72.5kg to 77kg at her peak last year, she explains that she’s “also a very good boxer”.
“I’ve got a left hook that could kill you.”
Adele’s One Night Only will be broadcast on Channel Seven and on 7Plus at 7 pm AEDT on 21 November, 2021 in Australia. And her upcoming album 30 will be available to stream on November 19, 2021.
