Usher showered the Wells Fargo crowd with 30 years of R&B hits, plenty of Ushbucks
The “Superstar” singer plays at Wells Fargo Center for a two-night tour stop.
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Under a sea of flashing lights and to thunderous applause, R&B great Usher proved once again why he continues to stand the test of time.
His musical wizardry and barrage of genre-defying hits were on full display at Wells Fargo Center on Friday night. The “Superstar” singer showered the roaring crowd with chart-topping jams and stacks of Ushbucks for the singer’s Past, Present, Future tour.
The Grammy winner cascaded across three decades’ worth of iconic break-up songs and club anthems that have defined his legendary career, which has grown more alluring thanks to his massively successful Las Vegas residency.
These moments, from childhood to his current post as an international heartthrob, were displayed on a giant, three-dimensional platform. “Prepare for an intimate ride,” the video echoed.
Like Michael Jackson’s “Smooth Criminal,” Usher, donning a dazzling black suit and thin-brimmed hat, glided to the front of the stage for “Hey Daddy (Daddy’s Home)” and “BIG.” He showed off the silk-smooth choreography that catapulted him to mega stardom in the 1990s.
A video of a teenage Usher performing his first single, “Call Me a Mack,” transported fans to the era he and a short list of other performers ruled in their day. “How many day ones do I have in here?” Usher asked the crowd as they screamed at a fever pitch. “Thirty years ago on this day, my first album came out.”
He performed “My Way” and “You Make Me Wanna” before dipping into such early 2000s hits as “U Remind Me,” “U Don’t Have To Call” and “Caught Up.” Then he exchanged his kicks for a pair of roller skates, with him circling the stage to such songs as “Love in this Club.”
Usher showed no signs of hesitancy, even with a postponed start to his tour due to a neck injury he sustained earlier in August.
Through the endless dance sequences and wardrobe changes, most of the crowd remained on their feet during the two-hour performance. When it seemed to be a brief moment to settle, Usher reignited the flame with a string of crowd favorites and one surprise performer.
Usher paid tribute to Philly soul icon Teddy Pendergrass. He performed “Love TKO,” and invited Philly rap legend Freeway to perform “What We Do” and “Roc the Mic” later in the show. “We not going to come out to Philly and not keep it right,” Usher said.
With “Loading Memory” flashing on the screen behind him, Usher rewound to such timeless hits as “Lovers and Friends” by Lil Jon & the East Side Boyz before speeding forward to electro-pop songs like “OMG” and “DJ Got Us Fallin’ In love.”
Usher played “Nice & Slow” while teasing a half-exposed abdomen before peeling off his shirt entirely. The classic R&B move sparked a collective gasp of approval from his admirers. He then spiraled into more gut-wrenching songs such as “U Got It Bad,” “Burn,” and “Climax” before revving his performance back up.
The crowd melted with such songs as “Superstar,” which inspired fans to match Usher’s seismic vocal run on the track. “I made a bet that if we sung [”Superstar”] in Philly, this would be the loudest crowd on the entire tour,” Usher said while encouraging them to sing at a higher octave.
On “There Goes My Baby,” Usher went into the crowd to embrace waving hands and encourage fans to sing the lyrics. One person grabbed the mic and delivered her own rendition of the song, while Usher stared in astonishment. “Thank you for giving me my mic back. I appreciate it,” he joked.
Toward the end of the show, a video of the 45-year-old singer featured him reflecting on fatherhood. He mentioned his early precautions as a dad, but he’s confident he’s the father to his children that he would have wanted for himself.
The video, set up like a Zoom call, showed Usher speaking to three other versions of himself over the last 30-plus years.
The show’s epic closure with songs “Good Good” and “Yeah!” emphasized his supremacy as an artist and world-class performer.
Usher performs a second show at Wells Fargo Center on Saturday, Aug. 31.
Setlist:
“Coming Home”
“Hey Daddy (Daddy’s Home)”
“BIG”
“Call Me a Mack”
“Can U Get Wit It”
“My Way”
“You Make Me Wanna ...”
“U Remind Me”
“U Don’t Have to Call”
“Caught Up”
“Yeah!”
“Don’t Waste My Time”
“Love in This Club”
“Tell Me”
“Say What U Want”
“New Flame”
“Margiela”
“Party”
“Lil’ Freak”
“Lovers and Friends”
“Nice & Slow”
“U Got It Bad”
“Climax”
“Burn”
“Confessions Part II”
“Euphoria”
“OMG”
“DJ Got Us Fallin’ in Love”
“Without You”
“Superstar”
“There Goes My Baby”
“Kissing Strangers”
“I Need a Girl (Part One)”
“My Boo”
“Throwback”
“Bad Girl”
“Good Kisser”
“Ruin”
“Believe”
“Peace Sign”
“Good Good”
“Yeah!” (Encore)