Chris Brown entertains half-full Consol with silky voice, slick dance moves
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There are more people who like Chris Brown's music than like him.
That's one way to explain why Consol Energy Center was half full Saturday night for his F.A.M.E. Tour stop.
The R&B singer, who was well on his way to superstardom, turned off a lot of people when he lost it on then-girlfriend Rihanna in 2009. Two years later he has a No. 1 album and big radio hits, but apparently the masses aren't lining up to buy a ticket.
The mostly female fans who turned out clearly have his back, regardless of what he does. Nonetheless, opening act T-Pain felt the need to offer a few words and even drag God into it.
"You wanna know what I hate?" he said. "I hate haters. If you love God and hate haters, put your hands up! My dog doin' his thing and no one can stop that."
The newly blond Mr. Brown burst out to do his thing dressed for combat in fatigues and boots on a high-tech, three-tiered stage with his band hidden in what looked like a boom box.
He's got at least three levels of talent: a silky tenor, acrobatic dance moves and a recently revealed flair for rap. Plus, if sick abs and a killer smile somehow count as talent, he's got those, too.
The voice, he showed off on MJ-like songs such as "Run It" and ballads like "Next 2 You" and "She Ain't You," and when he felt like dancing or just mugging, he had a backing track to cover him. So, the vocals were somewhat optional.
He also had a several thousand girls to sing along with him, especially on power ballad "No Air," which, with a Jordin Sparks video behind him, came to a "We Are the World" kind of finish. Midway through the set, he indulged his hip-hop side in a high-energy section with charismatic opener Tyga.
For "Wet the Bed" (yeah, there's a song called "Wet the Bed"), a pretty young fan was escorted to a divan at center stage, where Mr. Brown peeled off his shirt, revealing his impressive body art. Then he moved in to make out with her.
First Published October 30, 2011 12:39 am
