Okay, so here’s the real. Although I was excited, I didn’t know what to expect from Jazmine Sullivan on stage at The Pageant Thursday night for her “Reality Show” tour. On the strength of her voice, I will ride with Jazmine ‘til the wheels fall off. But the last time she was in town, I couldn’t wait for Mary J. to put her out of her misery on stage at the Fox. Well baby, she went beyond redeeming herself on that stage. She quietly let me know what was up before she even opened her mouth, by channeling the late great Vesta Williams in a denim cat suit and hair so big she had to turn sideways to enter stage left. Even though I was like, “Wait, is she gonna sing ‘Congratulations’? I sure hope so!” The fact that she didn’t was the only letdown of the night for me. Her core fan base of big women and gay men were deep in the building. They were so snatched that I can’t imagine that there was a bodycon dress left to be sold at any Torrid in the bi-state area – and the H&M Male racks had to be completely empty of blazers and bun-hugging jeans. I was right at home – and in heaven! Anyway, on with the show … Jazmine Sullivan was everything anyone would have hoped her to be. And the cherry on top was what felt like a 14-minute rendition of “In Love With Another Man.” Folks were acting like they had the Holy Ghost when they heard her run up and down the street with riffs that she and only a handful of others could pull off. I was like, “Wait, isn’t this song about infidelity? Are these runs supposed to have me feeling the spirit … oh well … sing, Jazmine!’”
