Friday Jams Live
18th November 2018
Western Springs Stadium, Auckland, New Zealand.
Review by Sarah Kidd. Photography by Doug Peters.
It may have been a Sunday in the City of Sails, but the people flooding through the gates for Friday Jams Live were determined to party like it was exactly that. Friday. Following the success of last year’s event, Friday Jams Live 2018 was back in a far bigger format with a range of artists on the bill that would make any R&B fan delirious.
But while the sun was out, and the fans were ready the venue itself was not. A few small delays with the internal gates opening saw the crowd grow a little anxious as the minutes ticked by; many others taking it as an opportunity to bask for a while on the lush green grass.
Soon everything was back on track and punters were quickly grabbing the best spot available for the opening act of Kings. Local flavor on a sunny afternoon, now who could argue with that? Dressed in a simple white hoodie and red cap, Kings kicked off proceedings with ‘Don’t Worry Bout’ It’, the current quintessential anthem of a kiwi summer and the crowd were instantly loving it. Following close behind with ‘We’ll Never Know’ and there was a sweet vibe in the air already, the home talent knowing just how to get a crowd into the mood for an afternoon of fun. While his set was brief it paved the way perfectly for an artist that would have been an inspiration to Kings himself, that of the almighty Che Fu; the gap in between the changeover filled with some sizzling retro jams by renowned ‘sneaker freak’ Australian DJ Yo! Mafia.
Accompanied by none other than King Kapisi himself, Che Fu came out swinging with a remix of his famous track ‘Chains’ which was released back in 1998; twenty years down the track and it still sounds just as fresh as ever the crowd singing the chorus back to Che Fu with unbridled enthusiasm. With Kapisi behind the decks in one of his trademark basketball singlets, Che Fu took it down a notch with ‘Misty Frequencies’, the chilled-out vibes seeing fans get their groove on. In true kiwi hip-hop style however, Che Fu soon had King Kapisi out from behind the decks and onto the ramp in the middle of the crowd to deliver ‘Screems From Tha Old Plantation’ – the Polynesian flavor something that is unique to a New Zealand (almost) summer concert. Dropping ‘Fade Away’ which once again saw the crowd dancing and the New Zealand hip-hop icons bid farewell to the crowd who were now primed and ready for the impressive line-up of International artists about to take the stage.
Estelle was up first, but disappointingly failed to ignite the fans; sure ‘American Boy’ was always going to be a hit, but with a fifteen-minute time slot, she never really had the chance to get things going before having to leave again, even with her cover of ‘Gypsy Woman (La Da Dee La Da Da)’. But no one could deny that she didn’t look fabulous in her silver sequin jacket and waist length braids; her two female dancers bringing some additional heat to the afternoon.
Yo! Mafia continued to kill on the decks; knowing just the right tunes to keep the crowd happy she added her own humour to the mix, her dance moves bringing many a smile to people’s faces. And of course, where would Friday Jams be without a little Fat Man Scoop? Holding a dance contest for a selected group of ladies he soon found himself the apple of a certain fans eye who was determined to show him her moves up close and personal, much to the crowd’s merriment.
But when the man in white stepped out onto the stage all bets were off; screams punctuating the air like fireworks as Ginuwine arrived looking every inch a star. Between ‘In Those Jeans’ and ‘Same Ol’ G’ he worked the crowd, the ladies screaming for more. So, it wasn’t surprising that hysterics almost broke out when the man himself decided to get down into the pit with his fans. Finishing with ‘Pony’ and the crowd were feeling it, Ginuwine showing his love for the ladies as he handed out single stem roses before leaving.
Minnesota R&B trio Next – their massive hit ‘Too Close’ still faring well after all these years – came and went and were soon followed by the English artist Taio Cruz; but despite Cruz’s track ‘Dynamite’ being delivered complete with CO2 cannons there was a definitive lull in the crowd’s energy.
As evening crept in the big guns began to come out to play; Eve the first to hit the stage. And she proved unequivocally that ladies indeed do it better. Appearing for her first time ever in New Zealand, numbers suddenly swelled at the barriers, anticipation levels turned to eleven. In a skin tight black and white outfit topped with a fluro pink jacket in true Eve style, she stormed the ramp with her troupe of male dancers. The first lady of ruff ryders dropped hit after hit, the Gwen Stefani track ‘Rich Girl’ paired nicely with ‘Let Me Blow Ya Mind’. Reggae morphed into more hip swinging beats as ‘Who’s That Girl?’ tripped around the stage while ‘Tambourine’ saw the stadium explode at the queen’s feet.
Down to the last three acts of the night and DJ Horizon took over the decks from Yo! Mafia; mixing a fine blend of old and new school, it kept the crowd on their toes as they sang along to their favourites; Fat Man Scoop making a welcomed appearance back on stage and hyping the crowd with a little ‘Jump Around’ from House of Pain which soon saw Scoop shirtless. Let’s face it, it wouldn’t be a party if Scoop wasn’t shirtless.
Accompanied by their mascot ‘Slugger’ a giant bear with an even bigger baseball bat the Grammy Award winning New Jersey trio of Naughty by Nature brought the East Coast flavor to Auckland. Classics such as ‘Uptown Anthem’ soon sorted out the day one fans from the crowd while ‘O.P.P’ united all who were present as one. As DJ Kay Gee kept the tracks spinning, Vin Rock worked the crowd, Treach close behind spitting rhymes with a mic in one hand and a bottle of champagne in the other. Proving to the crowd that he knew them well Treach peppered the set with some kiwi slang, before giving a shout out to all his “Maori and Polynesian people”. ‘Feel Me Flow’ conjured up images of weekend street parties, Naughty by Nature inviting everyone out onto the stage to join them, Ginuwine and Estelle happily letting their hair down with the East Coast rappers.
As evening descended New York came to the stage in the form of Salt n Pepa and of course the unparalleled DJ Spinderella, the ladies of the stellar line-up for the second time again proving that they know where. it’s. at. Dressed in black Salt n Pepa owned the stage, a live drummer and troupe of male dancers taking their performance to a whole other level. ‘Shake Your Thing (It’s Your Thing)’ intersected with ‘Gitty Up’ illustrating to all how this trio of ladies crossed the decades with their music while barely breaking a sweat. Pepa, her silver boots and cap emblazoned with her name toyed with her dancers as only Pepa can, both ladies receiving lap dances that saw the women in the crowd go wild; ‘Whatta Man’ an appropriate soundtrack to their revue. But there was no doubt about it, the classics hit the winning home run; ‘Let’s Talk About Sex’, ‘Shoop’ and ‘Push It’ – which saw all three ladies donning their iconic jackets from the 1988 video – bringing it home in style. Just as they did at last year’s ‘I Love The 90’s’ show – Salt n Pepa conquered Auckland.
Night had fallen, and twenty-five thousand fans were more than ready to welcome back Usher to New Zealand shores. The forty-year-old American R&B singer is considered to have one of the most ‘soothing’ voices in the R&B field, so it was no surprise that loved up couples were everywhere to be seen. But Usher had no plans to quietly take the stage, instead from atop a platform he appeared before all like a deity, a single arm raised to the sky. Below him on stage the biggest troupe of dancers of the day arrived decked in military style outfits, the ladies ones having a decidedly more raunchy element to them. ‘Stay At Home’ showcased just how good Usher’s vocals truly are; descending a stair case he moved across the stage as if on a conveyor of air; fans screaming his name in the hope of even the smallest of personal acknowledgements. Moving quickly through tracks such as ‘Love In this Club’ and ‘No Limit’, Usher and his accompanying dancers had the crowd baying for more. Ducking off stage for a quick costume change saw Lil Jon hit the fans with ‘Snap Your Fingers’, his distinctive beats and vocal combo always a hit with any audience.
Returning in a diamante studded jacket, Usher displayed some of those signature dance moves he is renowned for, before once again descending to the stage to perform a selection of slow jams which saw him strip down to just a singlet. There is no denying that Usher can sing, but the more laid back section of the set that included tracks such as ‘U Got It Bad’ and ‘Confessions’ saw a halt put on the party atmosphere causing the night to slump. For Usher fans however, his set list was like a gift from the heavens. Closing the night out on a bit more of a high, anthems such as ‘Caught Up’, ‘OMG’ and a double header of Lil Jon’s club bangers ‘Yeah!’/’Turn Down For What’ saw fans grinning from ear to ear; Usher throwing in one last slow jam in the form of ‘Burn’ before finishing the night on the David Guetta track ‘Without You’.
Friday Jams certainly wasn’t without its hiccups, the jump in size from Spark Arena to Western Springs maybe a little too ambitious in terms of organisation; however it would be safe to say that most people headed into the night with sore feet but happy hearts.
Were you there at Western Springs for this epic RnB and Hip Hop festival? Or have you been to Friday Jams Live on a different year? Tell us about it in the comments below!
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