Gracie Abrams Covers Lorde’s ‘Liability’ for New Zealand Surprise Song

The singer-songwriter usually performs one of her own deep cuts during the surprise song portion of the Secret of Us tour, but opted to pay homage to a local legend instead

On the Melodrama deep cut “Liability,” Lorde sings about the image of one girl swaying alone and stroking her cheek as she takes in what it feels like to be too much to handle. On Tuesday night, Gracie Abrams created a more communal experience out of that solitude during the Auckland, New Zealand, stop on her Secrets of Us world tour.

Instead of it being one girl swaying alone, it was a whole stadium of them moving together as the singer-songwriter covered the devastating piano ballad. Abrams’ “Liability” cover arrived during the surprise song portion of the show, typically reserved for performances of her own deep cuts and popular songs that didn’t make the official setlist. But Lorde is a local legend, so it was only fitting to honor her in her hometown.

Earlier this month, Dua Lipa stopped in Auckland on her Radical Optimism tour. As part of a cover series she started for the live show, she performed Lorde’s breakout single “Royals” for her audience. The record is more aligned with the upbeat tone of her show — Lipa hasn’t been big on ballads for a while now — but she still appreciates the tragedy of melodrama. Back in 2018, Lipa named “Liability” as a song she wished she had written. “I think she’s brilliant and such a great songwriter, and that song, it hits home,” she said at the time.

Abrams recently opened up about her friendship with Lorde in an interview with Billboard. “I’ve known her for quite a while now, and she happens to do this, but is just one of my favorite people to lean on period,” she said, “because she’s like 800 years old inside, and whenever we’re together, I feel my nervous system regulate differently. It’s comforting that there are people like her that exist, where you know that that’s a trusted person who you could always lean on. Her career arc is also one that I’ve looked up to forever. Such a gift to be able to ask her questions.”

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