I went to see the American all-girl RnB trio perform live at Wembley Arena in London as part of their Survivor 2002 Tour. I am a great fan of theirs and enjoy most their songs immensely. I was expecting to have a great night out...and now I will share my experience with you and let you know whether the show lived up to my expectations or not...
●● Destiny’s Child ●●
For those of you who are not too familiar with Destiny’s Child, here is a quick rundown…
They were an all-female Houston-based quartet that was formed in 1990 by Music World Management’s Mathew Knowles who is incidentally lead singer Beyoncé Knowles’ father.
The original group members were Beyoncé, Michelle, LeToya and LaTavia. However after their number one smash hit debut single ‘No, No, No’, LeToya and LaTavia parted from the group as they were unhappy with the management and were replaced by Farrah Franklin and Michelle Williams.
Just when it seemed that Destiny’s Child had seen the last of their problems, Farrah Franklin left the group after 5 months, leaving Beyoncé Knowles, Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams as a trio, basking in the glory of consecutive number one hits.
Their first album ‘The Writing’s On The Wall’ sold six million copies worldwide and their most recent original album of mainstream material, Survivor reached #1 in over 10 countries.
Destiny’s Child have a distinctive upbeat RnB sound but have also released some wonderful slow ballads recently, like Emotions. Their videos are always classy and glamorous and they have become role models for young girls worldwide. Beyonce is my favourite of the group, not just because of her beauty, but because I think she has a wonderful voice with strong vocal chords.
The group are now taking a break to pursue solo careers, which will probably begin straight after their Survivor 2002 Tour. I am sure that they will be successful in whatever they decide to do, but I do hope that they come back together and entertain us with more great hits!
Here is my review of the concert…Enjoy!
●● Supporting Acts ●●
There were three supporting acts for this concert.
I didn’t quite catch the name of the first supporting act, which may be because they failed to have any impact on me whatsoever! They were an RnB trio who were performing their own songs which I am certain that were unheard of by everyone in the audience, not only me!
BONIFACE- He was very good. His music was upbeat and the dancing performed by himself and additional dancers was excellent. I thoroughly enjoyed this act and it sounded like the rest of the audience did too judging by the cheers and hoots!
SOLANGE- I had never heard of her until I saw her here. And it turned out that she is also the sister of the lead singer of Destiny’s Child- Beyonce. She had excellent vocals and sang against a smooth RnB rhythm. She could easily be mistaken as a member of Destiny’s Child.
●● Venue ●●
Wembley Arena can be quite confusing if you haven’t been there before and especially trying to find your seat! However the ticket attendants are very helpful if you approach them.
I was surprised to see many empty seats around the Arena, but having said that, the volume of people was incredibly large anyway, so in a way it was just as well that it was not fully packed!
●● Performance ●●
As the curtain fell, Destiny’s Child emerged amidst a ring of flames to perform their hit song Independent Women Part 1. This drove the crowd wild as an inferno of flames licked the video screens in the background.
The bootylicious trio of Beyonce Knowles, Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams performed all of their hits like No, No, No, Independent Woman, Say My Name, Bug A Boo, Bills, Bills, Bills, Nasty Girl, Bootylicious, Survivor, Jumpin’ Jumpin’ and their latest ballad Emotion. The highlight of the show for me was seeing them perform Bootylicious, it is the song that I had been waiting for and I certainly was not disappointed by it!
The girls’ voices were in top form as they belted out their hits. They were supported by a band and a group of dancers that kept the show fast paced for most of the night, except during a few ballads.
Each Destiny’s Child member seized a little solo time in the spotlight. They each sang songs, or parts of songs, alone on stage. It was nice to have a variation but I found this a little boring as I had not heard any of these songs before! I think many people found the solo acts (Apart from Beyonce’s) a bit of a step down in the pace of the show.
All three girls looked fabulous and the outfits that they wore were sexy but classy at the same time, to fit with their chic image.
The second-to-last song was their Number One smash hit Survivor and the girls were decked in rainforest attire doing a rainforest-type dance. Some guys were beating on hand drums but the girls took over for a drum solo of their own as flames shot into the air.
The final song was Happy Face, and it turned into a big stage party. Balloons with smiley faces were released from the air and confetti was sprayed into the crowd as heaps of people from backstage suddenly appeared dancing on the stage with Destiny’s Child - including the supporting acts. Destiny’s Child put on a really great show, and by the end, the balloons weren’t the only things wearing happy faces. The entire crowd, including me, were smiling too :-)
●● Special Effects ●●
The girls made a grand entrance with revolving spiral stairs with effects of flames in the backdrop.
There were lots of great visual effects throughout the performance including exploding pyrotechnics, flames, fog, and fancy costumes, all of which were pleasing to the eye.
I liked the idea of the wide screen monitors capturing shots of the audience and the same screens also had some of Destiny’s Childs’ video clips playing in the background to their live performances.
●● Conclusion ●●
A great time was had by all of my mates and myself. We had paid £25 for our seats and were sitting in front of the stage with a great view! The tickets started at £15 but it was great to be able to see them clearly from where we were sitting instead of relying on the wide screen views.
The trio gave an outstanding performance and frequently got the audience to participate by cheering or clapping to their rhythms.
I was chuffed to see Beyonce in real life as I am a great fan of hers! She exceeded all my expectations!
I would definitely recommend going to see Destiny’s Child perform live. I can guarantee that you won’t be disappointed! :-)