By Michael P Coleman
I’ll confess to having been more excited about seeing the Golden 1 Arena last night than I was to see Bruno Mars’ show. I’d not yet been inside Sacramento’s impressive new venue, so I was looking forward to checking the place out.
Although I’d been impressed by a couple of one-offs from Mars, like his Super Bowl performances, I’m sure I was among the last to listen to Mars’ 2016 album, 24K Magic. So I strolled into the Sacramento stop of Mars’ 24K Magic World Tour a casual Bruno Mars fan.
I walked out a full-fledged, card-carrying Hooligan.
Mars, 31, proved to be a consummate showman, immediately wiping the concert’s prologued delay from our minds. “I know you’ve been waiting a long time,” the diminutive superstar sang. To be fair, the show’s 8pm scheduled start time was delayed only a few minutes, and started with two local acts, Sacramento’s DJ Gio and dance ensemble Jabbawockeez.
With those two acts and an extended stage set-up, Mars didn’t appear until almost 9:30. But from the moment he took the stage, he held the capacity crowd in his ever-capable hands.
To paraphrase the artist himself, Mars showed up and showed out — and he wasn’t alone. Many music industry legends showed up, from James Brown to Boyz II Men to Prince — all channelled by arguably music’s greatest living showman.
Mars brought every ounce of his infectious energy to Sacramento last night, along with all the hits. As impressive as he was on uptempo cuts like “Treasure” and “Perm,” the little guy secured his place in this writer’s music collection with his blistering vocal performances during his ballads, Very simply put, Mars tore “Straight Up & Down,” “That’s What I Like,” and “Versace On The Floor” up.
Michael Jackson was surely smiling down when Mars delivered a brilliant, elongated “When I Was Your Man,” earning adoration along with frantic screams from practically every woman in the audience and at least 10 percent of the men. One woman in the row behind me spilled her drink trying to get to Mars, screaming “Break it DOWN, baby!” as she tried to leap over my seat to get to the star.
Throughout the show, Mars’ vocal range was truly staggering. Often at a concert, I’m tempted to sing along with the artist. But I know when I’m in over my head, so last night I spared those seated near me and let Mars do his thing. There’s no other way to put it: boy can blow.
And let’s address the elephant in the room: Mars is also fine. With that pretty face, incredible voice, and in-your-face personality, Mars reminded me of…me…minus a decade or two!
(That’s the kind of swag you need if you’re gonna be a Hooligan.)
Speaking of those fleeting decades, I was delighted to have not been the eldest person at last night’s show, and I certainly wasn’t the youngest. Mars’ ability to connect with a broad demographic swath — with regard to age and ethnicity — was almost as impressive as his showmanship. Last night’s concert was, frankly, one of the best music concerts I’ve ever seen.
So I’m a Hooligan. Don’t laugh if you see me around town with a XXIV ball cap turned sideways on my head. After all, as Mars put it, if you don’t come to party, take your ass back home.
Connect with Sacramento-based freelancer Michael P Coleman at michaelpcoleman.com or on Twitter: @ColemanMichaelP.
