Sade performs at the BankAtlantic Center. (Christina Mendenhall / rhythmscene.com)

Photos: Sade, John Legend at BankAtlantic Center | Directions to Saturday’s show in Miami, nearby dining

There’s a point in Sade’s live show where it’s just her alone on the stage, singing about a Somali woman who desperately tries to scrape out a life for herself and her daughter. Behind the singer, the African sun seems to beat down on her from a video screen.

You can’t possibly look away at this point if you’ve paid attention at all during the concert – Sade’s magnetic style and look have long past drawn you in.

Such was the effect of a remarkable concert tour – Sade’s first in 10 years, which was on display Friday at BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise and will be again in Miami at American Airlines Arena on Saturday.

Her show is not just a triumph of her talent and her consistent career of sensual, sophisticated songs. It’s also an amazing display of stagecraft, lighting, costuming and musicianship.

Each song is a set piece, with its own storyline. The approach gave the show occasionally a summer-blockbuster feel, but at the same time – unlike so many summer blockbusters – the audience was fully engaged. You could never spot the seams.
Read the full story

Craig David leaves his Miami Beach hotel behind the wheel of a red Ferrari. (Storms Media Group)

Craig David gets set to get into his red Ferrari. (Storms Media Group)

Craig David, British R&B singer, shows that he knows how to leave and arrive in style, driving in Miami Beach in a red Ferrari.

David has had some success in the United States, though never matching the hits he had in the beginning of his career, including the top-10 single “7 Days” in 2001.

His success has been much more consistent in Britain, where he’s had 10 top-10 singles. He’s currently working on a new LP which he wants to release both in the U.S. and U.K.

Billy Davis Jr. and Marilyn McCoo entertain fans at Hard Rock Live. (Veda Jo Jenkins / sflimages.com)

“Tonight is a trip down memory lane and for some a history lesson,” McCoo told the audience.

The history lesson was that they started out as members of the group The 5th Dimension, which is where their love story began.

Photos: Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis Jr. at Hard Rock | Visit this writer’s website

It’s been 36 years since the duo left The 5th Dimension and recorded their number-one hit “You Don’t Have To Be a Star (To Be In My Show)” and on stage their vocals were pure as gold. It was apparent that the two have spent a lifetime together as they finished each other’s sentences as they talked with the crowd. For those in the crowd it was a soft, intimate experience.
Read the full story

Hey, SunFesters! I’ll keep this as brief as possible, because if you were at every or almost every day of this year’s SunFest like I was, you’re probably exhausted and don’t have a lot of patience for the words and the comprehension and such.

I enjoyed this year’s SunFest. Was it my favorite of the eight I’ve attended? No. Was it the worst? Not even close. All in all, it’s still an amazing value for the money – there is nowhere else where I could’ve seen Earth Wind and Fire and Jeff Beck down the street from each other for under 40 bucks. I probably couldn’t have seen even one of those acts for that price. And yeah, so the parking and the food is expensive. Where isn’t it? Park and walk, y’all. Eat first. Get hand-stamped, go outside to eat and come back. No one is tying you to the gyro stand with a bungee cord and a hot poker.

I also don’t get people who say “It’s a scam.” It’s costly, depending on how you do it. But a scam is when you pay money for something and get bait and switched. You paid for a bunch of shows that you had the schedule for, so it couldn’t have been a surprise to you. You went to those shows or you didn’t. You didn’t pay for Jeff Beck and get his cousin Joe Beck.  You weren’t scammed. You had a good time or a disappointing one. But I don’t get how anyone was scammed.

Read the full story

Usher performs at BankAtlantic Center as his OMG tour makes a second South Florida stop. (Christina Mendenhall / rhythmscene.com)

Usher whipped the crowd of South Floridian chicas to a fever pitch with a stop at the BankAtlantic Center on Wednesday night. Atlanta’s son is hailed for his outrageous performances, boosting his reputation as the “King of R&B”.

Usher literally descended on the BankAtlantic stage from the rafters above in a post-apocalyptic scene, opening the show with “Monstar”. From this vanquished stage and costume of destruction emerged the highly charged “She Don’t Know” and “Yeah”.

But a quickie stage and ensemble make-over lead to a nostalgic set with a look at early Usher faves. The nearly full arena took part in the classics “U Remind Me”, “U Don’t Have to Call” and “U Make Me Wanna”. With the crowd already on its feet it was time to blow them away.

Photos: Usher, Akon at BankAtlantic Center | Visit this writer’s website

The next stop on the “OMG” agenda, a galactic extravaganza. Ready for liftoff? “Mars v. Venus” boosted the performance to other worldly. And even as Usher took this chapter of “OMG” to “Nice & Slow”, the night was anything but.
Read the full story

Lauryn Hill performs at Jazz in the Gardens at SunLife Stadium. (Photo by Sheldon Tucker)

Photos: Jazz in the Gardens

She should have been the opening act.

As the headliner for the Sixth Annual Jazz in the Gardens, Lauryn Hill was a big disappointment. It was bad enough that fans had to wait an hour while the production crew worked out technical difficulties before she took the stage. Then the five-time Grammy winner turned out not to be worth the wait.

She looked a hot mess and didn’t sound much better. If she was going for the anti-sexy look, she definitely accomplished it with a black floor length skirt from the Gone With the Wind wardrobe closet topped with a red leather jacket and New York Yankees baseball cap. Several notes on “The Sweetest Thing”, a personal favorite of mine from the Love Jones soundtrack, were sour. And though she tried to hype up the crowd, it was clear her own energy level was lacking.

The crowd came alive at the sound of some of their favorites, such as “Everything is Everything”, and clearly enjoyed Hill’s rapping. Still, it seemed as if their appreciation was more for Hill’s effort – and the fact they were seeing her live after such a long hiatus from the music industry – than for her execution.
Read the full story

Heads of State: Johnny Gill, Bobby Brown and Ralph Tresvant make up the new R&B trio. (Photo by Ronnie Wright)

More: Directions, nearby dining

When Ralph Tresvant left New Edition for a solo career, it was always his intention that the group would do another project together. He wants fans to know that intent remains.

“Although we work on individual projects, we always have in mind the day that we would be able to come back as a six-man group, as New Edition, and do something as a team,” Tresvant said in a recent interview. “I know our fans kind of get mixed signals.”

That’s because what started as an R&B quintet which rose to fame in the 1980s with such hits as “Candy Girl” and “Cool it Now” and paved the way for other boy groups such as In Sync and Boyz II Men, has morphed into two distinct trios.

Tresvant will perform as a member of one of those trios, Heads of State, at this weekend’s Sixth Annual Jazz in the Gardens at Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens.
Read the full story

Ron Isley will lead the Isley Brothers at Jazz in the Gardens this weekend in Miami Gardens. (Moses Robinson / Getty Images)

More: Directions, nearby dining

Retirement is not an option for Ron "Mr. Biggs" Isley.

The 69-year-old lead singer of the Isley Brothers will be in South Florida this weekend performing with his brother Ernie at the annual Jazz in the Gardens concert at Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens.

Fans can expect to hear “Shout”, the Isley Brothers’ first big hit from 1959 along with more recent hits such as “Contagious”, which Isley recorded with R. Kelly.

How has Isley managed to stay relevant after more than 50 years in the industry? "By loving this music business so much and by God’s blessing," he says. "I’m just doing what I was born to do and I will continue as long as I can."

Age certainly hasn’t been a factor in his personal life; no reason it should be one in his professional life. In 2005, Isley married Kandy Johnson, a former back-up singer 35 years his junior. The two have a 4-year-old son.

"He’s my everything," Isley said of Ron Jr. "He travels with me everywhere. He knows all the songs. He knows everything." Ron Jr. will be joining his dad in Miami where "he’ll be front and center."

Read the full story

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Teena Marie, who made history as Motown’s first white act but developed a lasting legacy with her silky soul pipes and with hits like “Lovergirl,” ”Square Biz,” and “Fire and Desire” with mentor Rick James, has died. She was 54.

The confirmation came from a publicist, Jasmine Vega, who worked with Teena Marie on her last album. Her manager, Mike Gardner, also confirmed her death to CNN.

Teena Marie, known as the “Ivory Queen of Soul,” was certainly not the first white act to sing soul music, but she was arguably among the most gifted and respected, and was thoroughly embraced by the black audience.

She was first signed to the legendary Motown label back in 1979 at age 19, working with James, with whom she would have long, turbulent but musically magical relationship.

The cover of her album, “Wild and Peaceful,” did not feature her image, with Motown apparently fearing backlash by audiences if they found out the songstress with the dynamic voice was white.

But Marie notched her first hit, “I’m A Sucker for Your Love,” and was on her way to becoming one of R&B’s most revered queens. During her tenure with Motown, the singer-songwriter and musician produced passionate love songs and funk jam songs like “Need Your Lovin’,” ”Behind the Groove” and “Ooh La La La.”

Marie had a daughter and had toured in recent years after overcoming an addiction to prescription drugs.

Teena Marie

Photos: Notable Deaths in 2010 | Guestbook: Share memories, express your condolences

The world has lost a legend.

Teena “Lady T” Marie has died at the age of 54.

I saw Teena perform two months ago during the Capital Jazz Supercruise. She was by far the best act of the entire week hands down.

Teena’s was the first album I ever played back to back, over and over. I was in middle school when I first heard “Portuguese Love” and Square Biz.” I’ve been hooked ever since.

When I interviewed Teena earlier this year before her appearance at the Jazz in the Gardens show I just assumed that she would be blessing her audiences for years to come. Read that interview here: R&B queens Mary J. Blige, Teena Marie light up Jazz at the Gardens

We talked about her relationship with Rick James. He was her mentor, her friend, and her lover. Only she refused to put up with the fact that she wasn’t his only lover. Their tumultuous relationship would last until his untimely death in 2004.

Read the full story