Anthea Bissolati
I have been a busy bee this last month or so and I have so many things to tell you about, but I honestly had no time to do any writing, so I’ll start with catching you up on Atlantic Starr in Cape Town.
If you are anywhere near my age, give or take a couple of years, then your mommy and daddy possibly made you while listening to one of their songs. Are you blushing?? Please don’t.
Let’s be real. So much of the music our parents and grandparents listened to was somewhat on the sexy side but we didn’t realise it until we became adults ourselves.
This also shows you how classy they went about doing sexy songs. It wasn’t all in your face all the time.
Off to a Great Start With Great Opening Acts
On the night of 28 September 2024, Atlantic Starr graced us with their unbelievable presence, and I had the pleasure of seeing one of my absolute favourite bands from when I was growing up. The experience was nothing short of nostalgic.
Now if you have read anything I’ve written before, you will know that I have been to some really disappointing shows at Grand Arena and this was mostly due to the promoters. Well, this show more than made up for the absolute disaster of a show that I went to on 6 September but that is a story for another day.
The show started at 8pm on the mark as stated on the tickets. Please take note “other promoters”. Our MC for the evening was Peadon Smith who was very entertaining in between acts. Our band for the first part of the evening was Elixir led by renowned music director Dylan Roman on keys.
Dylan Roman has done lots of great work in the industry over the years and has graced the stage with many artists from Sybil to David Kramer. The opening performer was the very charismatic Fagrie Isaacs. Many of you may remember him from the 90s boyband The Boys pictured below.
Our final performer for the first part of the show was the incomparable Ms Leonie Le Roux accompanied on vocals by Desnin Williams of the band Elixir. If you have not seen Leonie do her thing yet, then you are missing out. Leonie was one of the early winners of the Westgate Mall Voice Search which started many years ago in the mid-90s.
Personally, I always enjoy her performances. She gives it her absolute all and girl has notes for days! I also love that she chooses to cover the less known songs by everyone from The Stylistics to Whitney. Her rendition of Betcha by Golly Wow had the audience singing along.
At the end of Leonie’s stellar performance, we had a break and then it was go time.
Let me just emphasise the absolute professional way this show was run. Again, I urge promoters to take note. Not a minute was unaccounted for. No time was wasted, and the stars of the show graced us with their presence at 21h30.
Atlantic Starr Keeps It Running In The Family
The band Atlantic Starr started out in 1976 with original members being the three Lewis brothers Wayne, Jonathan, and David. Sharon Bryant and Barbara Weathers were the first vocalists who both left the band in pursuit of solo careers. Many of the original members are no longer with the band including David Lewis.
What the band has done in the years to remain active and current is quite phenomenal and just shows you how they have developed their business savvy. Wayne Lewis who is still a lead vocalist for the band took the time to introduce every band member and once he did that it was clear to me that they have tried to keep the band in the family as best they could.
Every member plays a vital role and most of them are family. An example is Shammah Carter who is also a lead vocalist and also the nephew of Wayne Lewis. Lead female vocalist Melissa Pierce joined the band over 25 years ago and has been a beautiful addition to be honest. Basically they keep bringing in younger members who will keep the band going so it can remain a family legacy.
A Masterpiece
Many of the later generations haven’t had enough exposure to the older bands to fully tell the difference in terms of a class act vs just showing up. Let me tell you that Atlantic Starr is without a doubt a class act. They came, they saw and they conquered. Every move was well choreographed from the dancing to the beautifully coordinated garments they wore.
The ability they have to share the lead vocals, nobody trying to out-sing the other or show the other up is proof of the absolute professionals they are.
They sang their hearts out and they interacted with the crowd. Their band kept us entertained during wardrobe changes. They did all the hits, starting out with Love Crazy and then moving on to Masterpiece. They moved through albums and performed one of my favourites “My first love” so my night was made. The show was absolutely amazing!
The Very Few Negatives of The Atlantic Starr Experience
Firstly, there were people in the back who kept shouting for secret lovers from the start of the show. Is that really the only song you know? Why did you go to the show if you can’t appreciate their other work and let the rest of us enjoy it without you screaming in your best ghetto accent “speel secret lovers”? I love my brown people but we need to start growing out of these stereotypical behaviours please.
Secondly, the front and center i.e. golden circle ticketholders did not sing along or dance or even move. I want to know, did Grand Arena tell you to sit still or did you just buy the ticket because you could and didn’t really care who the band was?
We Will Love Atlantic Starr For Always
Now as someone who has been involved in the entertainment industry in some way, shape or form over many years I can tell you there is nothing more disheartening for a musician when you are on stage asking everyone to get up and groove with you and all they do is sit dead still. People in the front please do better!
In the end, they gave my brown people what they demanded and ended the show with Secret Lovers and Always.
WATCH Atlantic Starr Performing Live at GrandWest Casino Grand Arena Cape Town
Atlantic Starr Performance at the GrandWest Casino Grand Arena in Cape Town was a Masterpiece, a Dream Come True For Many Fans and The Cape Town Artists Opening For Them Were Amazing.
Personally, I had a marvelous time with my mom, my aunt (mom’s sister) and my daughter. My daughter had absolutely no idea who Atlantic Starr was before the show but she does now. She loved the show because like her mom, she can appreciate artistry and enjoy it for what it is. If asked she will tell you that her favourite for the night was definitely Leonie Le Roux because girlpower of course and she totally rocked that stage!
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