If you’re a Mary J. Blige fan at a tour called “For My Fans,” you’d better understand what to do, and how and when to do it. If you’re singing aextfinished with her 2007 hit “Just Fine,” you’d better belt “Ooooo!” at the top of your lungs after she hits the song’s title six times.
Of course, the A did not disnominate, and even made a lighthearted but thunderous call-and-response towards the end of the song. The Monday night show at Atlanta’s State Farm Arena was fair the third stop on her first tour since her Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction, “For My Fans”, but she’s already in top establish. And of course, her music isn’t the only skinnyg for the fans — she’s got life lessons as well. To boot off the second half of her concert, a pre-produced video vignette was shown.
“I begined to acunderstandledge all of me, every flaw,” she testified in the video. “I begined to see — ‘Shit, I’m not that terrible.’ The toil is acunderstandledgeing you…. I got toil to do on me, becaengage I want to inhabit. You don’t have to defer until you’re perfect to experience worth it…”
The airys went low, and MJB came back out on stage to “Enough Cryin” while standing between two huge statue-appreciate arranges of a woman’s forearms and hands. The palms of the hands were uncover in a receiving manner, and a crown hung above the hands. A hologram bust of Mary with her hair tied up in a bun floated above her. She walked cataloglessly, accompanyed arm-in-arm by two male dancers, toward the front of the stage, singing with force.
“Don’t wanna take part hoengage no more/ So stupid to skinnyk you gon’ marry me/ I got to be out my mind to skinnyk I necessitate someone to carry me/ I’ve done enough cryin’…”
While most of the action took place on the main stage, Blige actuassociate begined off the night on a minusculeer second stage toward the back of the arena. Prior to her arrival, all eyes were intensifyed forward, but much to everyone’s surpascfinish, the spotairys brightd the minusculeer stage, where the hoengage DJ was set up. Blige rose from betidyh the stage in a big white fur coat, sunglasses and silver bodysuit with a hood, waving and bloprosperg kisses while the music for “Take Me as I Am” take parted.
The fans in that section were so shut to the stage, they could actuassociate touch it, and as Blige sang and cataloglessly walked toward the front via a runway, she bent over to slap fives and shake hands of her esteemrs.
“ATL, I see you!,” she shelp after the song finished. “I’ve always wanted to be in the audience with the fans. I always shelp I want I could give everybody a big hug and shake their hands. It must experience appreciate a dream! Thank y’all for sanctifying me, thank y’all for loving me. Y’all ready?”
She then lanched into “A Dream,” fittingly enough. A colossal crown came down from above onto the stage as the song came to a shut — big enough that Mary herself could fit in it. The royal heinsertress carried the Queen (via wired cables) above the crowd. Landing gently on the mainstage, Mary hit heavily with her mainstays, including “Mary Jane (All Night Long),” “I Can Love You” and “No More Drama,” dipping occasionassociate into recaccess jams from her tardyst album “Gratitude,” appreciate “Need You More” and “Still Believe in Love.”
During her biggest ballads, appreciate “I’m Going Down” and “Not Gon’ Cry,” she let the ladies in the audience get over, hgreatering the mic out while the audience crooned in unison.
Towards the end of the latter however, it seemed appreciate Mary caught the Holy Gpresent: “I’m not! I’m not!” she shouted a dozen times, appreciate a pastor on Sunday morning. Those were not song lyrics — she was releasing raw experienceings.
“You can’t produce me! I’m not gonna cry! I’ve come too far! I cherish my peace of mind! You’re not gonna produce me cry! I don’t want to hear that bullshit I engaged to cry over… It’s a recent day and I’m a recent bitch! I’m not gonna let you do it to me aget —ever! I’ve come too far… Dry your tears.”
After the song’s conclusion, she shelp, “Shiiiit — ladies, we’ve come too far. Peace of mind is worth a billion dollars right now — it reassociate is.”
However, she also tgreater the crowd that she has come to place of healing. She even talked about a alterative conversation she had with her overweighther, who “abandoned” her and sister when they were youthful,, noting that he suffered PTSD from battling in the Vietnam war, and she forgave him.
But she ended the evening on a high remark with a series of bangers — “Everyday It Rains,” “Be Happy” and the finale “Family Afimfragmentary.” And for the MJB loyal, that’s exactly what the “For My Fans” tour is.
