I never thought I would see Justin Bieber perform live, but never say never!
Though I didn’t immediately recognize opener Hot Chelle Rae, it was fun to see them play their 2011 hit Tonight, Tonight, which instantly became familiar when they closed their set with it.
More than half an hour after Justin’s scheduled stage time at the Air Canada Centre on Thursday, a dramatic ten-minute countdown began. When he emerged from the ceiling wearing oversized wings, the first thing I thought of was Pink’s showstopping trapeze act at the 2009 Grammys. Justin may not have done any acrobatics, but his entrance was more than enough to excite fans.
From there, Justin literally started the show with a bang, as fireworks went off during his first song, All Around the World. Usually stars hold off on fireworks and confetti until the encore, so it was cool that these effects were used early on.
The themes for the graphics, video backdrops and dancers’ costumes ranged from outer space to underwater. Justin changed outfits at least four times and my favourite part was how he rocked fire engine red high top sneakers. (You know how much I love all things red!)
Whereas other musicians, such as Madonna, attempt to make social or political statements with their tours, the Believe tour is clearly all about Justin’s success. During a break, there was a video montage chock full of flashbacks featuring career highlights, album releases and TV appearances. Fans who pay to see him already know plenty about Justin, so I don’t think that was necessary. After all, isn’t that what TV specials and concert DVDs are for? A dance sequence would’ve been more entertaining.
Justin gave fans “a game show and a concert all in one” when he engaged in a game of catch with stage crew after he found himself up in the air without a guitar pick. Justin played off this oversight, but I’m sure there was some arguing about the error backstage.
Recognizing Justin’s fans’ obsession with tweeting and meeting him, the jealousy was palpable when a lucky girl from Sweden was selected to join Justin onstage, where he serenaded her. There might’ve been One Less Lonely girl in attendance, but thousands were envious.
The Believe tour wasn’t quite as over the top as I expected from the 19-year-old superstar, but I’ll admit those 100 minutes were pretty fun.
