Emeli Sandé brings warmth and uplift to the TLA

"I am full of light," Emeli Sandé belted from the stage of the Theatre of Living Arts on Saturday night. The line is, of course, merely a metaphor from the uplifting "Wonder" off her stunning 2012 debut, Our Version of Events. But so full of energy and positivity is the diminutive Scottish soul singer, it's easy to imagine her opening her mouth and the warm glow of a sun spilling out.

Sandé's story is as intriguing as her voice is powerful: After being discovered in a BBC music competition, Sandé - daughter of a Zambian father and English mother - deferred record deals to study neuroscience at Glasgow University before eventually returning to music. In 2012, she wowed the world with her performances in the opening and closing ceremonies of the London Olympic Games.

On Saturday, Sandé was making up a postponed Philly date from October. With a crack, black-V-neck-clad backing band consisting of guitar, bass, drums, and synths, Sandé, 25, her shock of platinum-blond hair bolting skyward, burst through a 12-song set with a two-song encore, proving as deft on a piano power ballad ("Clown") as on a drum-and-bass club number ("Heaven").

With a mix of songs about empowerment ("Tiger," for instance, "about feeling strong again"), overcoming heartbreak ("Maybe": "We both know we're hurting, maybe it's time to let go"), and love everlasting ("Next to Me" for her new husband) the night felt at times like an Up With People rally.

Sandé, whose motor seems to rev just a bit faster than everyone else's, prowled the stage in a purple skirt and sheer, black-and-yellow patterned blouse. She gesticulated animatedly, reaching up and out to the audience while singing about climbing mountains, moving mountains, and rivers reaching the ocean.

When Sandé sang on "My Kind of Love," "But don't ever question if my heart beats only for you," she thumped her open palm on her chest, evoking the old cartoonist's device for a pounding heart. It's a perfect analogy for Sandé, whose performance may feel at times exaggerated, though her massive talent does not.