Out in the theater, guests starts trickling in, from Japanese fashion fanatics to the wives of professional footballers and all the famous folk who have earned Liverpool the World Capital of Pop title. “I think it’s beautiful they’re finally coming together; that is family power,” says Ono from under her white fedora, peering over her ever present sunglasses. “I think that Liverpool has always been very forward and very avant-garde, and I think [Stella’s] got the blood and the DNA of Liverpool. I’m very interested in Stella’s passion. I think she’s a very good designer.”
And entertainer. Flanking her fashion display are performances by velvet-voiced singer Candie Payne, frenetic and so-hip-it-hurts band Palladium, and Flava, a raucous hip-hop dance crew from Cornwall. By the time a truckload of pink and silver heart- and star-shaped balloons float down from the ceiling for Stella’s bow, the crowd is roaring.
The excitement reaches yet another zenith as dusk descends on Anfield and the opening bands wrap up their sets. “Is everyone looking forward to Paul McCartney?” Ricky Wilson, lead singer of Leeds band Kaiser Chiefs, calls out to the crowd. In response, Stella shrieks so loudly that an elderly lady in front of her turns around to shoot her an incredulous glance, but—seeing that the shout came from the pop star’s daughter—her expression morphs into a sweet smile. When her father comes on, Stella can be seen stage right in her cream blazer, right up until the final encore number, “I Saw Her Standing There.”
