To pull the ultimate cliche out of the bag, a little rain couldn't dampen any spirits at the Ed Sheeran concert last night.
Sheeran held the Auckland crowd in the palm of his hand, with cheers erupting at his mention of writing The Hobbit's I See Fire in Wellington, and after he emerged for the encore donned in an All Blacks t-shirt.
The Grammy Award winner has performed here six times but this was his first powhiri.
He began his set with the crowd screaming his name. The English singer let everyone know one of the criticisms at another concert was his "lip-syncing", which he jokingly informed us was a bit of a mistake as he plays all his concerts live.
Sheeran sounded exactly like he does on the radio, not a note out of place. He stormed onto the stage with Castle On The Hill ringing out across Mount Smart stadium, followed by Eraser and hit song A-Team.
He told us he hoped we knew the words to his songs, otherwise it would be a "long two hours".
It seemed slightly surreal to see the international superstar in real life.
Moa played Sheeran's hit Thinking Out Loud to the star. How did he rate her performance?
Sheeran, aged only 16 days younger than me at 27, has definitely achieved a lot more, including countless music awards, being made a Member of the Order of the British Empire and also earning an honoury doctorate.
He'd always graced my radio, but prior to the show I had held Sheeran in regard for a 2015 visit near my hometown of Motueka, where he spent a decent amount of time casually visiting the small town of Marahau and exploring the Abel Tasman.
It wasn't until last night that I understood how he mesmerises his audience, with children, adults, elderly, and tight-knit groups of men and women singing along with him at the top of their voices.
Gallway Girl, I See Fire and Shape of You were crowd favourites, as the man himself showed off his vocal and musical talent throughout the show.
When he urged the crowd to sing, I had a pleasant realisation of how well Auckland Ed Sheeran fans could hold a tune.
The impressive visuals on the large screen behind Sheeran, encompassing him in bright colours, added another element to the show.
Before Sheeran took to the stage, LOST BiRD, made up of Ali Whitton and Oliver Vetter opened, using their upbeat rhythm to get the drenched crowd going.
Six60 may be a household name, but for Wellington band Drax Project, the Sheeran shows will hopefully be their big break.
Every time the rain started there was a mass shuffle of concert goers simultaneously whipping out brightly coloured rain ponchos.
A massive highlight of my night, and many of my friends were Drax Project. It shouldn't have really surprised me, as they had previously opened for Lorde.
Although we were there for Sheeran, I don't think anyone would have minded if Drax Project continued longer, with early fans soaking up their popular song Woke Up Late.
Ed Sheeran is continuing his tour tonight and tomorrow in Auckland, then heading down to light up Dunedin with three shows from March 29.
Dunedin scarfie royalty Six60 are opening for Sheeran's South Island shows, joined by Dunedin local Mitch James.
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