OMG, it's Usher!
Published:Monday | July 26, 2010 | 12:00 AM
Janet Silvera, Senior Gleaner Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
Emerging from behind a smoke-screen stage, multi-platinum artiste, Usher Raymond IV, paused, his dancers knelt as if bowing to their saviour, while the thousands of Jamaicans greeted him with deafening screams.
The built-up anticipation resulted in what seemed like a competition between the loudest screamers, and their reward was the sounds
of Caught Up from the man many defied the muddy grounds of the Catherine Hall entertainment complex in Montego Bay on Saturday to worship in living colour.
Like a musical messenger, mega star Usher came equipped with a First World, first-class production on the final night - International Night 2 - of Reggae Sumfest 2010.
Declaring his intentions early, which were not necessarily gentlemanly, the international R&B singer pulled for one of his biggest hit songs, You Make Me Wanna.
Right at home
Dancing on a chair to resounding approval, if he had had any doubts that he was not at home, that idea would have been quickly erased by the crowd's knowledge of every single word he sang.
An impressive dance number from the artiste known for his incredible footwork was topped off with an impeccable handstand. With a temperature that reached fever pitch some 10 minutes into his two-hour set, Usher and his six dancers showed off their evocative version of striptease while the singer belted out Bad Girl.
It was obvious that the majority of the females in the audience wanted to replicate this sensuous and provocative dance number. Usher moon-walked sideways to Trading Places, confirming he was the closest link to the late King of Pop, Michael Jackson.
Bumping and grinding came easily to the master, who is at the top of his game, and as he descended the stairs of the stage, the heat that emanated from his body forced him to provide his own cooling device. Pouring a bottle of 'Wata' all over his body, the hot-bodied, six-pack Usher had the females experiencing orgasmic pleasure, while the men stood with envy.
He lifted his tank top - some of the females became delirious - and it is safe to say they will probably be drooling until next week. By then, everyone had become an original Usher fan, and this was confirmed when the singer questioned, "Where are all my original Usher fans?" and all hands went up.
Audience mesmerised
With the audience now totally under his command, Usher could get them to do or say anything he wanted, and he did just that. First he took them down memory lane, with Nice and Slow, using the microphone stand as the woman in his life.
There was no rush to see him taking it nice and slow, as he poured more Wata on himself, making sweet love to the eyes that stayed glued to his antics.
When he opened his mouth to sing Burn, it was one of the songs he did not need to utter another word for as the female-strong audience com-pleted it, word for word. Confessions, Say Ohh and Love in the Club captivated the crowd, which stayed glued to his fantastic dance moves.
Usher, obviously, had done some research on his audience as he invited the Gully-gad Mavado on stage to do a short stint, doing Gully Side, but the energy that the artiste is known for was brought on by 'energy god' Elephant Man and Chris Brown.
The females literally lost all sense of place, as every single one of them felt like he sang specifically to her.
Usher came to Reggae Sumfest 2010 for the ladies and he titillated their appetites and they were happy to have him for breakfast.