Fergie and her glamorous life were on display last week at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino near Hollywood.
The pop sensation didn’t sell out the Hard Rock Live arena on Sept. 26, and despite her up-tempo hits, Fergalicious failed to generate much energy among the odd mish-mash of concert goers.
The audience ranged from screaming young girls to 35-45-year old couples. The age range in the room was a little surprising – assuming that most of her fans are teeny boppers and young adults.
But there seemed to be a lot of “grown-ups” (like I’m on my second mortgage grown-ups) out on dates. This might explain why it was hard for Fergie to connect with her audience, although she did try.
She gave them intricate choreography and a surprisingly soulful and textured vocal, but that didn’t seem to be enough to sustain the crowd’s enthusiasm for more than the first verse of any particular song. When Fergie unveiled her biggest hit and ace in the hole, “Glamorous,” the crowd cheered and then sat back and let her do her thing. Some danced in the aisle and others looked at them like, “Ok, so you’re excited.”
Fergie’s voice is impressive. Especially since most pop singers are digitized and produced into being decent vocalists. The true test comes when one is alone on a stage, microphone in hand. Fergie passed this test with flying colors. She performed an impromptu freestyle scat about chicken tenders, yes chicken tenders, which showed off her well-developed range and sultry vocal stylings.
Despite her more than capable singing voice, Fergie also made sure she had her mojo working at full capacity. The lady knows how to swing her hips. With the exception of songs like “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” where she could cut loose and sing without keeping time with professional dancers, most of her songs are poppy dance tunes. About 90 percent of the fun of seeing these songs performed live was seeing Fergalicious grind and slither her way through three minutes of drum synths and samples.
The show moved quickly from three-minute song to three-minute song. Fergie didn’t extend the songs that the audience responded well to, and her transitions from song to song were either choppy and quick or a little too verbose. She should have at least kept the beat going on “Glamorous” and “Fergalicious,” giving the crowd a minute to soak up the music and vibe with her performance. The show was a bit rushed.
Despite the pace of the show and the weird mix of 30- and 40-something double daters, Fergie did her job. She held down the stage and showed that she was a singer and not just a “pop sensation.”
Christophermattox@Hotmail.com
Photo by Sayre Berman. Fergie
No Comment