Thursday, August 18, 2011

GUEST POST: ADELE AT THE PALLADIUM

(This picture is from the L.A. Times' music blog, "Pop & Hiss."  Read their review of Adele's recent L.A. show here).

I'm really excited to have a guest post from my friend Lori.  I met Lori a long time ago (I worked at a sleep away camp as a counselor, she was a camper!). A couple of years ago, I bumped into her again when we both worked at MTV. More recently, she oversaw the team in charge of booking talent at Lopez Tonight – they had a pretty awesome guest list every night, and everyone from Prince to Slash played the show. In my experience, people in these positions get a little jaded over music – understandably, as they are inundated with it as part of their professional lives.

When it comes to Adele, Lori is the most vocal and enthusiastic fan I know. That’s the effect Adele has on people. I get it: there’s something about her voice that makes you forget about other singers. She may not be doing anything really new, but it feels new when she sings, because she is such a great singer (and at such a young age!). She’s going to be around for decades. So anyway, Lori, who generally rolls V.I.P. due to her industry status, braved general admission for Adele's show at The Greek in L.A., and here’s her report (thanks Lori!).

"I have to admit that I was cranky on the night I've been most looking forward for the past 7 months. All I could hope for was that the minute Adele hit the stage I was going to forget about the fact that I was crammed into general admission with little to no air as if it were a crowded Bikram class. All I could focus on was the sweat trickling down my back until the lights went dim and she stepped onto the stage.

From the first  note she reminded me why I was there.

To hear this amazing voice and these poetic lyrics that I've sung at the top of my lungs in my car for months.

To be introduced to her charming personality... a bonus (though I should have known better after reading that Rolling Stone article that left me with a girl crush).  From her goofy yet infectious laugh to comments like "I know that song was pretty sad. This next one is even sadder. But that's why you're here isn't it?!" And she's right. That's why we were and will continue to be.  While we all sang along to our favorites, I noticed it was one of those shows where nobody wanted to sing too loudly for fear of not hearing Adele's voice.

The way in which she so humbly thanked us for being there and making her a pop star in a world where she might not seem like the most obvious choice.  NO ONE left until the very end of the show. Rare.

And lastly, this has to be mentioned, her dress!! Gorgeous.  Sure she tugged it down quite often and dreaded walking past the onstage fan for fear of showing more than she'd like, but how beautiful she looked in it. A true inspiration in talent and poise.

I am sure everyone feels as I do in wanting to meet up with her for a pint... as if you're already friends.

Special kind of night. Special kind of artist."

So there you have it.  Lori has seen it all, she's worked at MTV, Fuse, Kimmel and Lopez.  She was blown away by Adele's performance. I don't think *I* have anything to add to that, but I think I'm gonna try and check Adele out next time she comes to NYC! 

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