If it isn’t love, why do I feel this way? Well, I’m just getting back in front of the laptop after the Essence Music Festival in New Orleans. I had a wonderful time. Three days of fun and three nights of concerts. The lineup included some of my favorites (Jill Scott, Fantasia, and Kem) and some fan favorites (Kanye, Usher, Trey Songz). But the group that got me was New Edition. From the time I saw their name on the Essence Music Festival website, I had to confirm my reservations. The memories they bring back. As one enthusiastic concert goer screamed, “I am twelve again!” Yes!
While my friends and those that sat around us speculated if all of the members would show up, I knew they would all be there. Of course, I was following three members on Twitter. And when Ron DeVoe tweeted that they were 6 deep, I couldn’t keep it to myself.
Of course, there were only 5 microphones on stage, but it wasn’t long before the king of R&B joined them with the suave dance moves. When was the last time you saw a group of men in suits? It’s a bygone era, but I’m glad they are keeping the tradition alive. What was even better is that they sang all of their songs. I’m talking the songs they made as a group and their solo efforts. That’s right we got everything from Popcorn Love to My Perogative, Sensitivity, My, My, My and of course…Poison.
There were so many great performances and some jaw-dropping visuals and grand entrances. But New Edition was tops for me (yes, it’s a generational thing, but it is what it is). Then the surprise performance was from Kem. I love his music. He is my generations Al Jarreau, who I didn’t always “get” way back when. But Kem connected with his audience without a Broadway-worthy intro or zooming in like Spidey (impressive, Usher). He didn’t sing for us, he sang to us and when he saw someone taking video with a cell phone, he took it and sang directly into the screen. And like Chaka Khan on Saturday, b
He had every woman’s heart in his hand when he so eloquently spoke about what he, as a father, wanted for his daughters. How he wants to prepare them to choose the right man but be OK without one. And how he wanted them to choose a man with a fico score of 800 and have an equivalent fico score of their own. We laughed, but we got it. Stay tuned, more EMF and New Orleans coverage to come.
