Bud Superfest w/ Anthony Hamilton, Kem, Jaheim & Raheem DeVaughn
Road Runner Mobile Amphitheatre
September 1, 2010
The Deal: Four headline-worthy R&B singers, team up for a night (well, tour) of smooth, sexy, soul.
The Good: Right from the start, things were interesting. Raheem DeVaughn had the challenge of opening the show while people were still filling in and he went to extraordinary measures to grab their attention. Interactive would be the understatement of the evening to describe it, DeVaughn was all over the place. On the stage, on the speaker, in the lawn section, tip-toeing the containing wall, even hopping over the barricade to grind on a woman Bobby Brown style while singing one of her love songs just inches away from her lips.
Had to snap a picture of Raheem DeVaughn singing on the rails
It was like a throwback to the New Jack Swing & Jodeci era how he went from on stage in a suit and a mic to shirtless in the audience with women all over him. He made sure people remembered his show, even if they didn’t remember the music.
Jaheim’s set was more traditional but his ballad filled set wasn’t light on entertainment. His stand and sing set included his hits and covers of Teddy Pendergrass and Luther Vandross. Adding to the class of his set was him walking down the aisle crooning and handing roses to women in the audience. I was hating at the moment but in hindsight, it was a nice touch. Don’t know how much the sunset had to do with it but the lighting for set really stood out to me.
Kem had a very polished set. Unlike his last show in Charlotte, this setlist was abbreviated with Anthony Hamilton being the headliner but he squeezed in lots of content. Whether it was standing atop a piano, pacing the stage or sitting, Kem was just cool. His smooth vocals went well with crisp backing band. His midshow testimony went over well with a Pro-Christ audience.
Anthony Hamilton came out singing his song “Mama Knew Love” over Drake’s “Over” which should’ve let people know his set would be more uptempo than they may have expected. I know I wasn’t ready for all his dance moves, it was like Deion Sanders in the endzone and a Soul Train line all rolled into one but the man got down! Musically, he seemed intent on making sure people heard music from his latest album, The Point Of It All, but didn’t neglect the songs people were really dying for, “Coming From Where I’m From” and “Charlene.”
The Bad: Seat crashers were at an all-time high, which really wasn’t a problem until later in the night when people with primo seats, were doing mingling and wanted them back. Attention spans were on E by the time Anthony Hamilton got on stage. That, coupled with it being a mid-week show, meant lots of people didn’t get to see the finale where Hamilton spoke from the heart about how much it meant to him to be back home and the support he’s gotten from here the beginning.
The Verdict: A great show to end the summer. The ridiculous cost for beers didn’t slow down the audience from getting saucey but it was all love and really, there’s nothing better than drunks singing along and slow dancing to soul music at the end of the day. Hopefully they called a cab.
