Words by Scott Rowe, photo provided by artist
I've been lucky enough to be at the House of Blues in Dallas three times in the past two weeks, but I think my fourth visit might have been the cherry on the top. The mighty beings at American Airlines and MasterCard brought Dallas-native Demi Lovato to the House of Blues for a one-off show (actually the second of two one-off shows). Demi also played the same corporate-sponsored show a couple weeks prior at the New York City Center, a venue whose capacity is 2,750. The only reason I mention the capacity at the Center is because the capacity for the House of Blues in Dallas is only 1,625, probably one of the smaller shows Ms. Lovato has played in many years. The last show she played in Dallas that was modestly-sized was at the South Side Ballroom in 2014, which has a capacity of nearly 4,000. She has been a mainstay at the American Airlines Center for years and she will be returning with DJ Khaled on March 7th (Tickets), so catching her at the House of Blues is not only special for her fans, but probably fairly special for her as well.
The general admission floor was packed beyond capacity, as fans had been waiting for hours prior to the doors opening to ensure the best possible spot for the show. The VIP balcony was not bursting at the seams but it had a nice gathering of young and old, finding their spots minutes before Demi was scheduled to perform. She was slotted to start her performance at 9:00PM, but her band did not walk onstage until 9:05PM, not something most patrons would find troubling but a few girls sitting behind me made sure to comment, "...starting at 9:00PM? Well that's a lie." Seriously? Obviously she has not stood in a photo pit for over an hour waiting for KISS to start their show in Durant or the thousands who waited until 4:45AM to see Kanye perform at Bonnaroo in 2008? Five extra minutes? The horror.
But Demi followed her band onstage, not to any pyrotechnics or flashy LED panels, but simply the roar of her fans. This show was a stripped-down, no frills sort of event, a warmup for her upcoming arena tour, which promises to have much more flair and excess. Wearing a blue jumpsuit and white heeled boots, Ms. Lovato strutted to center stage and opened her show with "Cool for the Summer", a track from her previous release, Confident. Her four-piece band and two backup singers sounded great alongside Demi, whose vocals were vibrant and powerful. Showing her down to earth personality, during "Sexy Dirty Love", Demi sat down and untied her boots, placing one down next to her and took the other in her hand and walked up center stage, telling the crowd "screw these boots, oh my God!!!" It was a very personable moment and the crowd ate it up.
The show was a well-oiled machine, with not much banter between songs, though Demi did make jokes about Brazilian jujitsu and how you can pretty much do anything at intimate shows because the fans will love anything she does, like walking around with her now dirty feet. One thing the fans did love were her songs. She performed a whopping 19 songs in just under 75 minutes, 11 of which were from her latest release, Tell Me You Love Me, but she made sure to revisit some of her classics such as "Give Your Heart a Break", "Confident", and "Heart Attack". As with most good things, they must come to an end. This show came to an end with her red hot song, "Sorry Not Sorry", as a giant singalong and dance party ensued inside the main hall at the House of Blues. As quietly as she strutted onstage to begin the show, she graciously thanked her fans for the evening and pranced offstage to another roar of cheers. Simply put, Demi is an outstanding performer with a great personality and a fantastic voice. She's also using her voice for many good causes and is making a difference in the lives of fans everywhere. A special thanks goes out to American Airlines and MasterCard for making this show possible, a huge thank you to Demi's management for allowing me to hang out for a few hours, a big thank you to the House of Blues for all of their hospitality, and the biggest thank you to Demi herself, for treating her hometown and its fans to such a special night.
enjoy.
The general admission floor was packed beyond capacity, as fans had been waiting for hours prior to the doors opening to ensure the best possible spot for the show. The VIP balcony was not bursting at the seams but it had a nice gathering of young and old, finding their spots minutes before Demi was scheduled to perform. She was slotted to start her performance at 9:00PM, but her band did not walk onstage until 9:05PM, not something most patrons would find troubling but a few girls sitting behind me made sure to comment, "...starting at 9:00PM? Well that's a lie." Seriously? Obviously she has not stood in a photo pit for over an hour waiting for KISS to start their show in Durant or the thousands who waited until 4:45AM to see Kanye perform at Bonnaroo in 2008? Five extra minutes? The horror.
But Demi followed her band onstage, not to any pyrotechnics or flashy LED panels, but simply the roar of her fans. This show was a stripped-down, no frills sort of event, a warmup for her upcoming arena tour, which promises to have much more flair and excess. Wearing a blue jumpsuit and white heeled boots, Ms. Lovato strutted to center stage and opened her show with "Cool for the Summer", a track from her previous release, Confident. Her four-piece band and two backup singers sounded great alongside Demi, whose vocals were vibrant and powerful. Showing her down to earth personality, during "Sexy Dirty Love", Demi sat down and untied her boots, placing one down next to her and took the other in her hand and walked up center stage, telling the crowd "screw these boots, oh my God!!!" It was a very personable moment and the crowd ate it up.
The show was a well-oiled machine, with not much banter between songs, though Demi did make jokes about Brazilian jujitsu and how you can pretty much do anything at intimate shows because the fans will love anything she does, like walking around with her now dirty feet. One thing the fans did love were her songs. She performed a whopping 19 songs in just under 75 minutes, 11 of which were from her latest release, Tell Me You Love Me, but she made sure to revisit some of her classics such as "Give Your Heart a Break", "Confident", and "Heart Attack". As with most good things, they must come to an end. This show came to an end with her red hot song, "Sorry Not Sorry", as a giant singalong and dance party ensued inside the main hall at the House of Blues. As quietly as she strutted onstage to begin the show, she graciously thanked her fans for the evening and pranced offstage to another roar of cheers. Simply put, Demi is an outstanding performer with a great personality and a fantastic voice. She's also using her voice for many good causes and is making a difference in the lives of fans everywhere. A special thanks goes out to American Airlines and MasterCard for making this show possible, a huge thank you to Demi's management for allowing me to hang out for a few hours, a big thank you to the House of Blues for all of their hospitality, and the biggest thank you to Demi herself, for treating her hometown and its fans to such a special night.
enjoy.
Demi Lovato @ House of Blues, Dallas, TX
Reviewed by Scott Rowe, Editor
on
February 11, 2018
Rating:
Reviewed by Scott Rowe, Editor
on
February 11, 2018
Rating:
.JPG)