Cheesesteak fan Omar Apollo wants you to dance through your heartbreak

R&B crooner Omar Apollo is ready to dance as he breaks your heart. The Indiana-raised gay heartthrob works through a devastating breakup in his latest album, God Said No, where he bares his vulnerability and pettiness over tracks that will have you crying at the club, but still moving to the irresistible beats.

That balance — Nylon called God Said No a “rare album you can both cry and have sex to” — is exactly what makes Apollo’s work so compelling and relatable. It’s something that even the Internet’s favorite boyfriend, Pedro Pascal, discusses in a shockingly tender voice note featured on one track. “I’d had an incredible time on a job, but my heart was pretty shattered by something,” Pascal’s note begins as he talks about walking through the Swiss city of Lucerne nursing a heartbreak. “I can’t believe I’m sending you this,” Pascal says at the end.

Now on tour, with a stop at the Mann’s Highmark Skyline Stage on Sunday, Apollo is encouraging fans to dance through the pain.

When we spoke over the phone, Apollo said he felt like an athlete as he prepared to kick off the domestic leg of the tour in Indianapolis. The sound of his compression leggings softly hummed in the background. He’s been working with renowned choreographer Keone Madrid (whose collaboration credits include Kendrick Lamar, BTS, and Billie Eilish) to create a theatrical production that combines narrative choreography, fashion runway, and a dance party unlike anything he’s done before.

Lately the singer has been thinking about opera, and he listed Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot as an inspiration for the show.

Amid the elaborate staging, Apollo is still making room to be intimate with his audience, including personal footage of him as a kid singing traditional songs in Spanish.

“I’ve honestly never seen a show like this at all, so it’s exciting to feel that way — and I’m not, like, nervous about it, because I actually really, really love it,” he said. “I think that when you work really hard and you love something, you don’t really feel anxiety about it.”

Apollo fondly remembers his first time performing in Philly at a college event, where he was at the end of a long lineup and feeling tired. “I remember just going on stage and the crowd being so receptive and loud and cheering — they were so great,” he said. “That memory always stuck with me, so I’m excited to be back. I know that Philly brings the energy.”

One of his tour managers, Jake Hicks, is from Philly and Apollo says “he put us on to all the good spots” to eat. Last time they were in town, Apollo ate at Fishtown’s Middle Child Clubhouse, where he said the neighborhood had “such a good vibe,” and also stopped at Max’s Steaks in North Philly, the notable celeb favorite that appeared in Creed.

“I love cheesesteaks, I’ve been eating them since I was little even though I wasn’t in Philly,” said Apollo. “My dad would bring them home, ‘cause he was a cook at restaurants.”

His parents emigrated from Mexico and raised their three children in South Haven, Ind., where they opened a restaurant called the Super Taco. The self-taught bilingual singer has remained close to his parents as his career has skyrocketed; last year, he brought his mom as his date to the Grammys, where he was nominated for best new artist (he lost to Victoria Monét).

Apollo is also dabbling in new projects. His stop at the Mann comes right before the Venice Film Festival, where he’s headed for the premiere of Challengers director Luca Guadagnino’s new movie, Queer. Apollo makes his acting debut in the romance drama set in 1940s Mexico City alongside James Bond star Daniel Craig.

Details are scant, but Guadagnino has experience capturing heartbreak and gay yearning from his 2017 film Call Me by Your Name. Even without an acting background, Apollo can relate.

Omar Apollo’s “God Said No” World Tour at the Highmark Skyline Stage at The Mann Center, 5201 Parkside Ave., Fairmount Park, Phila., 215-546-7900 or manncenter.org.