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Early on in their sold-out show at Seattle’s WAMU Theater Sunday night, the 27-year-old singer-songwriter Kehlani posed a challenge. “Can I leave here saying you turned up the hardest out of anyone on this tour?” Kehlani, who uses she/they pronouns, asked their audience. I can’t be sure what Kehlani ultimately thought of their stop by Seattle, but by the end of their set it seemed reasonable to assume that, for them, it would at least be unforgettable. Not, unfortunately, because of its as-yet-unrivaled turning up, but because whatever went right tended to get its thunder stolen by a distracting wrong. 

Kehlani’s ferocious second opener, Rico Nasty, inexplicably never showed, their appearance replaced with a perfunctory, sound problem-plagued set from Kehlani’s touring DJ named Noodles. Apparently worn down by the hot-aired, sardine-tight general-admission section, an audience member seemed to pass out about every 10 minutes, a worrying trend that began even before the silk sheet-voiced first opener, Destin Conrad — who proved the smoothest-running thing about the concert — could take the stage. (Kehlani, consistently diligent, unhesitantly stopped songs and offered water bottles if she sensed an attendee in trouble.) 

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