Recaps, commentary, highlights of your pop culture favourites and mine! Email me: timmybopper@yahoo.com

 
I don't know where everyone is getting their "Mariah is so done" news from, because last night's concert was by far, one of the most AMAZING concerts I have ever been too. Granted, the fourth row centre seats offered a perfect view and okay, the Canadian Idol contestants were just metres away from us, but more on that later... Free from the wild antics and dark staging of Christina's show and less hip-hop wannabe than Justin's, Mariah simply let her voice take control of the audience. She might be a little more "girly" than before and maybe her songs aren't as popular as say Britney's, but Mariah can still outsing anyone! Her voice not only has power, but also emotion and warmth so you believe what she's saying, as opposed to Christina, who had a great vocal range, but little connection with her songs. Mariah sang all her hits (including Emily's fav "My all," my fav, "Hero" and the crowd fav, "I'll be there" with Trey Lorenz) and handled some new ones with surprising results. Her Eminem diss track, "Clown," featured a clown in a blond wig wearing a Detroit Pistons jersey, while a reversed letter "E" illuminated the screen. Clever clever... Another song, "Subtle Invitation," saw Mariah descend from the ceiling on a white linen swing, which matched her barely there, white strapless mini-skirt. Which brings me to another point - Mariah looked GREAT! She is not super skinny, but rather has a fit, curvy body that looked perfect in each of her ensembles, which ranged from pink barbie shorts, to a silver prom-style dress to an ostrich dress complete with feathers. (Don't ask)

The coolest part of the night? Mariah introduced her band by singing (rather than speaking) their names and singing a little something about each of them - all improvised to a jazzy piano backing. When it came time for the keyboard player, he played a scale that went higher and higher up in octaves until he hit piercing notes... and then Mariah matched the notes he played until SHE hit those piercing notes! It was like an "I dare you to hit this note" sorta thing... (Hard to explain, but awesome to watch/hear). I once heard that Mariah is listed in Guiness as hitting the highest note ever recorded. I believe it! Amen!

The thing about Mariah is that she's just a fun, caring, embraceable performer. With a little wink here or a slight giggle there, you could tell she wasn't really a "bitchy diva," but was rather just playing the part. She's not caught up in herself and realizes exactly who she is and what she's doing. "It's all jokes," she said at one point and so you knew that when she called for tea or asked for help with the mic, she was just exaggerating the antics for the crowd. The other thing is that Mariah is not a good dancer! You could tell she felt uncomfortable during "Honey," and "Fantasy," but her effort to do those routines really came across as being heartfelt and for the fans. We would've been happy watching her on the couch singing "Through the Rain," but she pushed herself to do the dancing as if to bring an added element and flavour to her show. And you know she loved the fans, walking through the crowd not once, but twice - during show opener, "Heartbreaker" and then at the end during "Hero."

Now about those Canadian Idols... my friend Emily and I walked over to meet/get a pic with either Mikey or Audrey. Emily was too nervous to tap Mikey on the back to say hi while I choked and barely made out an "Aud-" before she gave me a "were you trying to say something?" look and turned away. Emily is, however, quite proud that she got to touch.. I mean, shake Ryan Malcolm's (the singing waiter) hand. Yes... she's actually proud of that!

All in all.. an awesome night... Say what you want about Mariah, but she's no slacker, that's for sure. And with a voice like hers, it makes going to a concert all about the music - and all about the fans - again.

posted by Tim at 3:17 PM