Fans eat out of Akon’s palm

May 11, 2008

THE fireworks erupted into the night sky like a shooting star, exploding into a million minuscule lights that lit up the entire Cricket Oval at Lugogo. It was about 9:30pm last Friday night. A plume of smoke engulfed the podium as lights went out.

By Sebidde Kiryowa, Jude Katende and Gilbert Mwijuke

THE fireworks erupted into the night sky like a shooting star, exploding into a million minuscule lights that lit up the entire Cricket Oval at Lugogo. It was about 9:30pm last Friday night. A plume of smoke engulfed the podium as lights went out.

Defeaning screams from anxious fans who had jam-packed the venue as early as 6:00pm when the gates were flung open, filled the air. To them this was the cue that Akon, the Senegalese American R&B star they had waited for in vain the previous Friday was finally set to roll.

However, when the thick billow that had engulfed the podium cleared away, it was singer Jose Chameleone and his Leone Island crew who were set to perform. The singer did his part fast.

Bebe Cool leapt onto stage next in the company of the Maisha Dancers and was later joined by Nazizi of the Kenyan duo Necessary Noize. Nigerian R&B duo P-Square came on next and worked the crowd into a frenzy with their latest club banger Do Me among other songs.

It was coming to 11:00pm when Akon’s DJ, Baby J, took centre stage. With a punk hairstyle and clad in a matching waist coat and a Scottish kilt, Baby J set the mood with his wild mixing and the way he threw jibes at the VIP section.

Finally, all pandemonium was let loose when Akon, clad in a hooded jacket, hit the stage. He later stripped down to bare body.

Like Lucky Dube, Akon’s performance lasted close to two hours. It was also non-stop and just as electrifying. He tried to give context to many of his songs through brief anecdotes and stories about himself, which kept his performance lively and exciting.

But the highlight of his performance lay in his style of giving everybody a chance to touch him. He flung himself into the crowd and asked them to pass him on with their hands until he reached the end of the arena. It never worked with the general seating, but the VIPs pulled it off successfully.

It was a good gesture, Akon’s way of emphasising to fellow Africans that the only way to go forward is to keep each other up, but it was also a dangerous thing for a star of his magnitude to attempt.

See, rather than carry him, most fans were keener on ‘feeling’ him. At some point, things got so chaotic that he was forced to walk as fans pulled him down, screaming in wild delight.

Although he could not sing the 100-plus collaborations he has done with other artistes, he did his best to sing his part in a few like Bar Tender, Sweetest Girl, Smack That and I Wanna Love You.

Amongst the solo tracks he performed were Mama Africa, Keep On Calling, Ghetto, Locked Up, Don’t Matter (for which he performed both the reggae and and Caribbean /Soca version) and Lonely. The whole while, he had the star-struck audience eating out of the palm of his hand.

Was it a worthwhile concert? Besides Akon’s crowd-carrying feats which proved rather time-wasting, with laser lighting, big stage, good sound and a show-performance from Akon, Celtel Uganda can rest assured Ugandans are satisfied that they delivered on their promise of a phenomenal show.

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