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*I made my way to The Theater at Ace Hotel in downtown Los Angeles on Saturday, February 10, 2018, to experience my first Goapele concert. I have always enjoyed her smooth voice, powerful message and her spirit, so I was looking forward to finally seeing her in person.
My evening began with a trip to the donor lounge to be treated to delicious morsels and libation; a very cool start. Although there was no opening act, so to speak, Los Angeles native DJ R-Tistic entertained us, spinning tunes that I was actually familiar with, even if the guy sitting next to me wasn’t. He asked who the singer was more than once during the DJs set.
DJ R-Tistic was a hit with the audience, who moved and grooved to each and every song. There was one woman who danced in her seat through his entire set. Goapele came onstage looking primed, svelte and ready. Her voice was smooth and crisp from the very first note of her intro.
She went into “Powerful,” which was an indication of how the night would be…powerful. Goapele performed songs from her new release, “Dreamseeker,” which has a mix of socially conscious tunes and songs about life and love. She also performed her older material.
She treated the audience to a medley of “Different,” “Insanity” and “Catch 22.”
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There was a screen behind Goapele that projected various relevant images throughout the 90 minute set. During her “Stand” interlude, Goapele enlisted audience participation, having us sing, “If you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything.”
During her performance of “Stand,” the words were made more profound by the projection of Rosa Parks and various incidents of civil rights unrest. “Strong Like Glass” had various glass related images projected on the screen. It was a sight to behold and mesmerized the audience, who were taking photos left and right.
Goapele performed “Stay,” a duet recorded with BJ The Chicago Kid, sans BJ. Although she pulled it off, it would have been on total hit status if a male had been there to sing BJ’s part. Once Goapele began singing, “Closer,” the audience got up and as close and personal to the stage as they could…and most never sat down again.
After “Closer,” she performed Roy Ayers’ “Everybody Love the Sunshine” and nailed it. The audience stood for that as well. Although there was a time or two when the background singers and band were louder than Goapele, I don’t think the audience cared.
At the end of the evening, those in attendance at The Theater at Ace Hotel hadn’t fallen for anything, except Goapele.
Marilyn Smith is a Los Angeles based writer/reviewer. Contact her via [email protected]
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