THIS Leeds venue was an intimate, but inspired choice for the vocalist Jessie J.

Sunday night’s audience, comprising mainly a large contingent of 20-something women, were on great form, not only giving support act Luke James an enthusiastic and friendly reception, but also singing in unison to the interval DJ set of handbag classics.

Crammed to capacity, the crowd almost exploded with excitement when the top turn burst on stage at 9.20pm, which is a tad late on a school night.

Sporting a snazzy jet bob, Miss J was initially dressed in short Lycra shorts and a sparkly black top, emblazoned in white lettering spelling “Leeds” on the front and “25” on the reverse to indicate the date of JJ’sYorkshire Sweet Talker Tour.

She kicked into action with the new album’s strutting Ain’t Been Done and immediately the Academy was alight with hundreds, not dozens, of phones capturing every moment from every conceivable angle.

The Sweet Talker album was well represented with Seal Me with A Kiss, Keep Us Together, You Don’t Really Know Me, Burning Up and Masterpiece all delivered with the confidence and articulation of a world-class performer.

It is rather telling that Jessie J and Adam Lambert, who undertook the lead vocals at Queen’s Leeds First Direct Arena show last week, are established music theatre performers. Prior to American Idol, Lambert was in the Los Angeles production of Wicked, while a young Jessica Cornish was first seen on the West End stage in Whistle Down The Wind.

This background has helped both hone their craft and exude such a high level of assurance, so that audiences easily fall into a relaxed but up-for-it mood. Interestingly, Jessie introduced what was her early audition piece, a cover of Whitney Houston’s I Have Nothing.

Fate stopped Jessie from meeting her childhood hero by hours. They were due to perform at Clive Davis’s pre-Grammy party on February 11 2012, the night Whitney died.

Mostly, fans wanted the hits. Jessie J did not disappoint, giving them Who You Are, Do It Like A Dude, the David Guetta collaboration Laser Light and her trio of number one singles Domino (quite early in proceedings), Price Tag and the monster hit Bang Bang.