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Alicia Keys Tour
The Key Arena
Saturday, August 10, 2002 8:00pm
By:
Sirion Sewell
The
house was full. The ticket said the show started at 8:00pm and
it did. Don’t we just love it when that happens? The first
opening act was Freak Nasty (the self- proclaimed, “Alicia
Keys Hype Man”) and his DJ, I-Rock. All I can say is that they
were the best opening act that I’ve seen yet. They definitely
know how to rock a party and make people move. DJ I-Rock spun
all our favorites, old and new, while Freak Nasty acted a
complete fool. He danced and freaked his way all around the
stage and the Arena. This was one of the funniest performances
I’ve ever seen (if you were there you know exactly what I’m
talking about)! Freak had us laughing all through his
performance.
The audience seemed to have come prepared for a nice, mellow
evening. That’s not what they got! After making their way to
their seats, they quickly found themselves not needing to sit
down. Some were atop their chairs, hollering, clapping,
singing along and dancing in the aisles. This was not just
your regular opening act! It was a mini show, complete with
music, dancing, comedy and fun. It was truly enjoyable. One of
my favorite moments was when Freak did an impression of
Prince. He paraded around, like “The Artist” and sang along to
one of his songs. This caught us off guard and had us rollin’.
At the end of their show, Freak performed a song and dedicated
it to the late and great, 2Pac, Biggie, and Aaliyah.
When a billboard sized, airbrushed backdrop of Donell Jones
suddenly appeared, we knew we were going to be serenaded with
the sweet sounds of smooth R&B crooner. Donell wore an
ensemble similar to something Usher might wear. Dressed in a
burgundy, floor length, leather coat, with a matching hat,
white shirt, jeans and Adidas shoes, Donell was ready to jam.
He sang many of the fans’ favorites including “Put Me Down”,
“You Gotta Be the One”, “Shorty Got Her Eyes on Me”, “Knocks
Me Off My Feet” and other ballads. He was on key and his
vocals were astounding. He introduced his two lovely dancers,
Heather and Trisha, and they began to wow the crowd with their
gymnastic-like dance moves. Donell then introduced his
background singers and left the stage while they entertained
us. To our surprise, they could really sing and they almost
upstaged him. As his backup singers helped us croon, “DJ!
DJ!”, he returned to the stage for a few more songs.
With the band bringin’ the funk, and Donell tearin’ up joints
like: “Where I Wanna Be”, and “Love”, I know there wasn’t one
person who was not feeling the love given by Donell Jones. The
true story about a friend and his personal struggles was the
inspiration behind his album title and soon-to-be new single,
“Life Goes On”. After he performed “Life Goes On” it left us
all wondering what the “real” story behind the song was. On
the last song, “You Know What’s Up”, Donell had everyone stand
up as he dedicated the song, to fallen hip-hop icon, Lisa
“Left-Eye” Lopes. Donell closed out his show by introducing
his amazing band.
Finally, it was time for the headliner, the woman with the
right keys, Ms. Alicia. The lights went out, the stage
darkened, and the fans went wild. A keyboard stood alone in
the middle of the stage, waiting for Ms. Keys to take the
stage. Bright strobe lights carefully followed the beat of a
dramatic Beethoven piece. It was so exciting. Our hearts
raced. The crowd was screaming for her to come out. And when
she did, she was so beautiful. She entered through the front
door of a New York apartment building set. She graced the
stage wearing a green shirt, white pants, a tan sequined furry
floor-length coat, a matching “pimp” hat and black high heels.
She was a gangster diva. She waited a few minutes for the
crowd to simmer down because they were going bananas for her.
In fact, throughout her show, she waited for the crowd to calm
down. This may have been what contributed to the show lasting
so long.
Keys was full of energy and ready to set the house on fire.
After welcoming us to the show and mentioning that it was her
first time in Seattle, she opened up her set with, “Rock Wit
U.” About halfway through, she commented on how many people
were in the crowd and how nice the venue was. With two large
screens on each side of the stage, we could see her playing
her piano, singing and enjoy the heart-felt emotion she
experienced while she played. She broke into, “How Come U
Don't Call Me” and switched from the original version to the
remix. Everyone stood up, clapped and sang along in unison,
even the little kids! At the end of the song, everyone was
standing up cheering her on as she stood in a phone booth and
hung up on the man who never called her.
Then out of nowhere, DJ I-Rock wanted some attention and
started “scratching” right in the middle of Alicia talking to
the audience. Then her band and I-Rock decided to have a
“challenge.” It was up to Alicia and us, to figure out who was
the best. The battle was on! I-Rock brought out Freak-Nasty
and the crowd went wild. I-Rock and Freak went back and forth
with the band and the backup singers. Then one of Alicia's
backup singers brought out their secret weapon. A 16 year-old
beat boxer from the Bronx named “Anointed”, who had us all on
the edge of our seats with his anointed skills. When Alicia
came back out, we all had to choose a winner. Of course, it
was a tie, so both! I-Rock and the band won.
Everyone settled back down as Alicia kicked her band off stage
so she could spend some quality time with us. She spoke to the
audience as if she were speaking one on one. She said that by
talking to us and relaying her music to us, it was not only
“therapy” for us, but for her as well. She was right and this
concert was just what the doctor ordered!
One overzealous fan, somewhere in the back, got a little too
rambunctious and was given the boot. How sad! During our
“therapy session”, Alicia sang a medley of slow songs as a
black backdrop complete with clouds, stars, and the moon
filled the entire stage. It was truly a magical evening.
Although all the songs performed were great, the long, drawn
out, remix version of every song was a bit too much.
Alicia also sang, “Caged Bird”, “Butterflies”, “Light My
Fire”, “Girlfriend”, “A Woman’s Worth”, “Goodbye” and many
others. During one of the many breaks in the show, the drummer
began to sing and play the bongos. Then from out of nowhere,
colorful lights flashed, smoke flowed, dancers began to dance
and the stage became reminiscent of a full on Broadway Play.
The whole show was breathtaking. Alicia then treated us to a
special flash photography moment, in which she posed on stage
with Freak. After introducing us to her band, she was off.
The concert was so well done that I didn't realize it was over
until she left the stage and came back for an encore
performance of her groundbreaking hit, “Fallin”. She softly
thanked us and said goodnight. It was over. The show ended at
around 11:30pm. Ms. Keys definitely knows how to put on a
show!
Commentary:
The show was absolutely, positively amazing! I couldn’t
believe I was actually sitting there, watching, the fabulous
and fine, Ms. Alicia Keys. Alicia sang her heart out. She is
an incredibly talented young woman who combines a mixture of
old school funk, contemporary, classical, new age & hip-pop
music and makes it work! Prior to the show, I wasn’t a big
Alicia Keys fan but after seeing her live and in concert, I
now have a newfound respect for her remarkable talent! This
concert brought about a clearer understanding of why she is
referred to as “the incomparable” Alicia Keys. Alicia Keys
turned the Key Arena and Seattle OUT!
For more on Alicia Keys visit:
http://www.aliciakeys.com
http://www.donell-jones.com
http://www.jrecords.com
http://www.laface.com
Special Thanks to:
Michico
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