CONCERT REVIEW - Universal Amphitheatre, Los Angeles
07/27/2001
By Adell Henderson
Tonight's show began with new Jive recording artist Syleena Johnson, who literally got her 15 minutes of fame with an extremely short set. Although she had good intentions and showcased her God-given talent while warming up the crowd for her headlining labelmate R. Kelly, one big thing was missing from thing her performance: the crowd. Nevertheless, the small number of early-bird concertgoers who witnessed Ms. Johnson do her thang (including her soulful single "I'm Your Woman") seemed to appreciate the singer's heartfelt effort.
After a short intermission, ticket-holders began to slowly but surely fill the many empty seats in the auditorium. It was now time for Soul Life/Atlantic darling Sunshine Anderson to light up the stage. After a warm welcome, the Charlotte, North Carolina native ran through a saucy set of cuts from her gold-selling debut, Your Woman. Throughout, she kept things moving during her intimate show by playing her easygoing, girl-next-door persona to the hilt, creating a receptive environment for her witty songs of love-gone-wrong like "He Said, She Said" and her album's title track. Overall, this felt more like a conversation with a girlfriend than a performance--no cameos, no dancers, just Sunshine. Between songs, she stopped and reflected on her experiences falling in and out of love, with a familiar flava reminiscent of old souls like Aretha Franklin and Mary J. Blige that kept listeners on edge yet also at ease. But it wasn't until Anderson closed with her signature cut "Heard It All Before" that the concertgoers showed true signs of life, as they stood up, sang along, and danced to the new no-nonsense song of the century. Keith Murray shocked the room when he performed on "Home Alone," making one of his first appearances since being released from prison. As expected, the crowd went bananas.
After the Sunshine came the reign--the moment everyone had been waiting for. As soon as R. Kelly--a gangsta of love who's made his mark as the ghetto Luther Vandross/Michael Jackson/Prince all rolled into one--stepped foot onstage, there wasn't an empty seat in sight. The celebration began immediately when Kelly's current party anthem "Fiesta" exploded out of the speakers, followed by "Home Alone" featuring Keith Murray--who shocked the room when he emerged to perform his verse, making one of his first appearances since being released from prison after serving two and a half years. As expected, the crowd went bananas.
During his blue rhythmic rap session, Kelly ran through as many historic hits as Muhammad Ali's fists: "Bump & Grind," "Down Low," "When A Woman's Fed Up," "Slow Jam," the list goes on. He even found time to dress up and give the audience his sure-shot Stevie Wonder impression, performing a medley of the legend's classic selections as an added bonus. And, like any true headliner, Kelly came with a bag full of tricks to go with his exciting stage show. Props included a 15-foot platform at the back of the stage (which served as a landing zone for his brigade of sexy female dancers, who were springboarded into the air from backstage) and a gigantic widescreen monitor that switched from live concert footage to various pre-recorded images.
Throughout his erotic performance, Kelly ducked backstage a handful of times, leaving the crowd with a variety of visuals on the big screen--including an intense hype session by NYC's famed mic-controller Fat Man Scoop, a one-on-one interview with Mr. Kelly, a '70s blaxploitation segment featuring a confrontation between Kelly & Mr. Biggs, and, as the show's finale, an inspirational cartoon intro to "I Wish" and "I Believe I Can Fly" that depicted him reuniting with his deceased mother at heaven's door. By the night's end, fans left the Universal Amphitheatre feeling like they had witnessed some true, full-scale entertainment.