"It happened the moment, that you were revealed. 'Cause you were a dream that you should not have been, a fantasy...real." Ascension (Don't Ever Wonder) - Maxwell
You know something Maxwell, that is exactly how I feel about you. This is the man we were all introduced to by the classic gem The Urban Hang Suite. IF you think that I made a big deal about George Michael - HA!! Folks you have NO IDEA what this event means to me. Two more days and counting...
Your girl has been kind of down over a few issues, so I decided to treat myself to a concert. The toss up was between Raphael Saadiq at SOB's or Eric Benet and Dwele at B.B. Kings. The latter won out, since I figured that Raphael will be back and you best believe I will be there. I ended up at B.B. Kings and as I stated in my Facebook status: If last night was any indication of what is to come on Thursday with Maxwell, I just may need an oxygen mask at my disposal. It will be too much and I just cannot and will not be able to take it. Last night made me inhale deeply, exhale deeply, shake my head in awe of the talent bestowed upon us, rub my eyes in disbelief and make me want to go home and accost my significant other. Hmm Hmm HMMM it was a night.
Dwele took the stage first, looking all dapper in his white suit jacket and open Miami Vice style shirt. Fro all done up to a tee and and a wicked pair of, "damn I am sexy and slick" shades. And I did not get that close, but I am sure he smelled hella good. Dwele oozed sensual power through his demeanor, aura, lyrics and voice. Dwels sailed effortlessly through quite a few tunes from Sketches of A Man. "Travelin' Girl," "Body Rock," "Spiritual" and "Vain" with precision, ease and enough sex appeal to squeeze into the whole room. Everyone was in their glee when Dwele sang "I'm Cheatin'," but when the first note of "Find A Way" was played, he shut it down. I have to admit, I was pretty much just singin', grinin' and vibin' and did not whip out the video that much. However, I did have to get a few seconds of him crooning "A Few Reasons" and of his drummer. The dude, was S-I-C-K. And UNFORTUNATELY Blogger is so damn temperamental, it is not allowing me to upload my video. And honestly, I am not in the mood to fight with it tonight, so I will deliver them another day.
As for Eric Benet, I don't even know what to say about the man. He is absolutely phenomenal and I have no idea why he is slept on. It's a damn shame, it really is. The man has talent oozing out every single pore of his body. He can sing a chinese food menu for pete's sake. And sexy!! Oh mother of satan I rebuke thee, he is SEXY. He started the show with one of my favorite tracks "Femininity" and then followed with "A Spiritual Thang" and then had the nerve to hit me with another favorite, "When You Think Of Me." Let me tell you, at that point I was already done for the night. One after the other he was hitting us non stop. When he finally reached to "Chocolate Legs," I thought I was going to forget to breathe. And I swear, this was all in the first 20 minutes of the show!! It happens to be my favorite song on his new album Love & Life. The lyrics are well crafted to portray the safety of home, love and security in the strong limbs of his chocolate love. He even sang one of the ultimate wedding songs, "Spend My Life With You." A Grammy nominated duet originally done with Tamia, yet it came to life with the help of Kim Johnson (yes, from the Isley Brothers and Johnson Sisters fame). The crowd was in sync with Eric throughout the entire show, especially towards the end when he had the crowd moving to and fro simultaneously to his command. There was no way he could have left the venue and not sing "Georgy Porgy" there would have been mayhem. So he ran back on for his encore and had B.B. Kings shook up! Eric basically took up from where Dwele left off and ran with it. Think Usain Bolt with the ultimate pass off in the relay - that was Dwele and Eric Monday night. It was THAT serious. I am still looking for a word to describe the night, when I do find one, you will be the first to know.
Flashback of the day: Ohhhh I had to go here. This song has been on my mind for the past few days. I have to request it on my friend EJ's podcast! You can't front, she did the damn thing on this song!!!
See y'all soon...
Tha Connoisseur
