The originality of Lucky Dube’s shows and his energetic performance have earned him a lot of praise. Lucky Dube, well known around the world for his music and lyrics in the reggae genre’, hails from South Africa. A week ago, I finally got the opportunity to attend one of his concerts at First Avenue, in downtown Minneapolis. The show, which was an extension of the Afrifest Celebrations, started early Monday night with doors opening at 7pm.
I was prompt though there really wasn’t anyone on line, contrary to what I expected. Inside the venue, people were scattered everywhere. I hooked up with a few of my friends who were there already and chatted a bit as we listened to reggae music playing from the speakers.
Shortly, Larry B., one of the organisers of Afrifest, appeared on stage with a band. They performed a handful of reggae songs, as people continued to stream in. After a brief intermission, a different band, The Elementals, took to the stage and sang some Roots music. By this time, the venue was filled with people anxious for the main event to begin, me included.
Another brief intermission and finally, the introduction of Lucky Dube. On stage were the guitarist, the drummer and the sound engineer. From one end of the stage came three beautiful women, Lucky Dube’s back-up singers and dancers, dressed in black and white. Around their waists, over their costumes, were vibrant colored skirts made out of beads.
Suddenly with a burst of energy, Lucky Dube appeared. There were screams, cheers and ululations from the huge crowd of fans. Having never seen Lucky in person or in concert, I was star struck and amazed. The minute he started singing, we all jumped up and down in unison to the beat and sang along to the music. The place was alive with energy and excitement.
Lucky Dube who has been singing for over two decades and won numerous awards, performed song after song, that kept the audience on toes and engrossed. Included in his performance were some of his popular songs like Prisoner, Feel Irie, Slave, Remember me and Together as one. He also performed songs – Shut up, Respect, One – from his new album, Respect, which he recently released. His band, which was absolutely amazing, entertained the crowd with an energy that matched that of the artist.
By the end of the concert, exhausted but still in high energy, we left First Avenue amped on Lucky’s musical lyrics and feeling content.
About Helen Kinuthia [1]
Helen blogs on the Minneapolis nightlife and entertainment scene. You can read her entries here [2].
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