Mariah Carey: Charmbracelet Tour (August 13, 2003)
I must say that, although the concert was highly expensive (because I
had awesome seats on the floor), it was well worth it. I had previously
seen Mariah when she was out on her Rainbow Tour (with Da Brat...in fact,
that was my first concert :-] ), and I thought that was pretty awesome.
After seeing her this summer, I was beyond pleased. I'm sure this will
be the best concert I ever attend.
Unlike other artists who usually go on tour with another musician,
Mariah's opening act was a comedian. He was extremely funny (and I
unfortunately forgot his name). I think having a comedian gave a big
plus to the show. Although I would have liked to see someone else
perform, I'm always up for a good laugh.
There were rumors about Mariah coming out and walking into the crowd
and stuff. It ended up being true, and everyone knew about it, so it
wasn't as big of a surprise as it should have been. Before she came
out from a "secret door", she had these dancers dance around in a freaky
circus/mime type of way (probably to distract the audience...but it
didn't work out). There was also a huge climax of little soundbites
from all her hit songs playing before the dancers came out--songs like Dreamlover,
Honey, Visions of Love, etc. She finally came out, singing one of her
hits (which I can't remember...I think it was Fantasy). I was a bit
disappointed that she didn't walk out on my side of the auditorium, but
I forgive her.
As the show continued, it got more intense and better. She continued
to play all her hit songs and a couple off of her new albumn. For those
of you who don't know, she had this little poll on her site where you
can vote for the song you want her to perform live during the concert
you're going to be at. The song that was chosen for my concert was Can't
Take That Away, off of her Rainbow CD. I've had a natural affinity
to this song ever since I first heard it. The lyrics are powerful,
meaningful, and it has honestly given me so much inspiration. When
I heard her sing this song live I was touched. Yes, it sounds extremely
corny but I was amazed. This song has so much meaning for me personally,
and to hear it live was just beyond amazing.
As she continued on with the night she brought out amazing set props.
In fact, they were probably some of the best set props I have ever seen in my
life. She had this awesome "circus theme" going on for a while, so she
brought out all these dancers and they tumbled and did interesting
dances as if they were in the circus. She also took the time to introduce
her back up singers and band--all who sing and play beyond outstanding (and
I have therefore decided that I will work hard enough to be one of her
guitarists :-] ). We also heard a song from her back up singers which
sounded almost as good as Mariah!
As the concert started to come to a close, Mariah took the time to acknowledge
the fans. Unlike a lot of other artists I've seen who have a somewhat "cold"
tone when they acknowledge their fans, for some reason, it seemed that Mariah
truly meant what she was saying. She thanked her fans for sticking through
all the media's B.S with her whole "Mariah Crazy in the Hospital" deal, and she also thanked everyone for supporting
her for so long. She also took the time to read out loud and notice almost
every fan sign that was visible that night (which I thought was extremely sweet,
seeing how a lot of artists don't do that). The best sign out there that night,
I have to point out, was the 'Mariah for Governor' fansign. I totally agree. :-]
The night came to a close with a performance of her song 'Hero', another one
of my all time faves. Although the concert was a few weeks ago, I'm still not over
it and how amazing it was. I've been a Mariah fan for a long time and although I get
ridiculed for liking her, I'm not ashamed to admit that I'm a huge Mariah fan.
She has talent whether people try to deny it or not. She's had such a big influence
in pop/r&b music. She's come such a long way (in terms of being the girl who
was so poor she had holes in her shoes because she couldn't afford any), and I'm happy
for her. She's a true performer and her concert was beyond amazing.
