It’s 8:45 PM on a Monday.
It’s 8:45 PM on a Monday.
A scantily clad man named Henry Metcalf steps out on stage in a glimmering pink tutu and hair extensions down to his back. With sassy charm and a style so chic it would make Brandy Alexander jealous; he welcomes the crowd to the Cheap Queen tour. Already I’m thinking: “This is gonna be good.” He welcomes out drag queen Tynomi Banks in knee high yellow boots and all of her booty-shaking glory. The crowd is enamoured and can’t get enough of her moves. At one point, she jumps into the crowd and starts to dance among them. King Princess isn’t even out yet. I am not one of the screaming fans. I am but a humble observer, with only one thought racing through my brain: “This is genius.”
The amount of times I’ve stood at a concert, legs heavy, brainwaves nullified, 30 minutes after the opener thinking “can they just fucking come out already...” It’s too many to count. The most entertained I’ve been during this obligatory period is when Tyler, the Creator had the good sense to put on King Krule’s The Ooz while I patiently awaited his entrance on the Flower Boy tour, but somehow I doubt this satisfied everyone. You’d think pre shows would be a common sense move for entertainers with the budget to provide one. Hell, movie theatres have been doing it for years. Promoters, take notes.
Then came the big moment: King Princess leaps onto the stage with electrifying energy. The crowd is wrapped around her fingers. Call it hyperbolic, oftentimes her showmanship recalls a young Freddie Mercury, her pacing motions forcing the audience to pay attention. From stage left to stage right, every move she makes feels excitingly sporadic yet completely conscious. What seems like crowd pleaser after crowd pleaser, from Prophet to the titular Cheap Queen, is performed with passion and focus. King Princess’s legitimate rhythm guitar and piano soloist abilities are only an arsenal to her true talent as an effective songwriter, she knows what her fans want to hear. Sometimes she’ll just shout out “how’s the show, bitches?” and the place just erupts.
There is one moment, through no fault of her own, where the illusion breaks. During a solo performance of Homegirl, a softer moment in the high-octane setlist, rowdy crowd members start chucking random objects directly at the performer. The first time she lets it go. But then it happens two more times. On the third, she snaps:
“Stop fucking throwing shit at me!”
Without missing a note, she hops right back into the song. It was pretty awesome, actually. Such blatant disrespect for performers should be addressed and the way she handled it was an all-star move.
All and all it was just a stellar show. Cheap Queen is a solid record, but seeing the material performed on stage gave me a newfound appreciation for King Princess as a musician and a performer. Whatever is next for her blossoming pop stardom, I’m here for it.
Comment after the jump.
It’s 8:45 PM on a Monday.
A scantily clad man named Henry Metcalf steps out on stage in a glimmering pink tutu and hair extensions down to his back. With sassy charm and a style so chic it would make Brandy Alexander jealous; he welcomes the crowd to the Cheap Queen tour. Already I’m thinking: “This is gonna be good.” He welcomes out drag queen Tynomi Banks in knee high yellow boots and all of her booty-shaking glory. The crowd is enamoured and can’t get enough of her moves. At one point, she jumps into the crowd and starts to dance among them. King Princess isn’t even out yet. I am not one of the screaming fans. I am but a humble observer, with only one thought racing through my brain: “This is genius.”
The amount of times I’ve stood at a concert, legs heavy, brainwaves nullified, 30 minutes after the opener thinking “can they just fucking come out already...” It’s too many to count. The most entertained I’ve been during this obligatory period is when Tyler, the Creator had the good sense to put on King Krule’s The Ooz while I patiently awaited his entrance on the Flower Boy tour, but somehow I doubt this satisfied everyone. You’d think pre shows would be a common sense move for entertainers with the budget to provide one. Hell, movie theatres have been doing it for years. Promoters, take notes.
Then came the big moment: King Princess leaps onto the stage with electrifying energy. The crowd is wrapped around her fingers. Call it hyperbolic, oftentimes her showmanship recalls a young Freddie Mercury, her pacing motions forcing the audience to pay attention. From stage left to stage right, every move she makes feels excitingly sporadic yet completely conscious. What seems like crowd pleaser after crowd pleaser, from Prophet to the titular Cheap Queen, is performed with passion and focus. King Princess’s legitimate rhythm guitar and piano soloist abilities are only an arsenal to her true talent as an effective songwriter, she knows what her fans want to hear. Sometimes she’ll just shout out “how’s the show, bitches?” and the place just erupts.
There is one moment, through no fault of her own, where the illusion breaks. During a solo performance of Homegirl, a softer moment in the high-octane setlist, rowdy crowd members start chucking random objects directly at the performer. The first time she lets it go. But then it happens two more times. On the third, she snaps:
“Stop fucking throwing shit at me!”
Without missing a note, she hops right back into the song. It was pretty awesome, actually. Such blatant disrespect for performers should be addressed and the way she handled it was an all-star move.
All and all it was just a stellar show. Cheap Queen is a solid record, but seeing the material performed on stage gave me a newfound appreciation for King Princess as a musician and a performer. Whatever is next for her blossoming pop stardom, I’m here for it.
Comment after the jump.
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