Keke Palmer performs in New York City in September 2023.Photo:Sara Feigin//sarafeigin.com
Sara Feigin//sarafeigin.com
Is there anythingKeke Palmercan’t do?
But referring to the live event simply as a concert would understate its content — the production may as well be called The Keke Palmer Variety Hour.
Keke Palmer performs in New York City in September 2023.Sara Feigin//sarafeigin.com
Before Palmer hit the stage, she didn’t have an opening act. Instead, a large video screen played original sketch comedy videos featuring characters from her one-woman seriesTurnt Up with The Taylorsdiscussing her career and hilariously trying to steal her spotlight. Two DJs also kept the party going until her performance officially kicked off around 8:30 p.m.
After starting the show with 2016’s “Hands Free,” theNopestar — alongside four dancers — welcomed fans to the Big Boss Tour and noted that “it’s been such a long time” since she last toured.
“Big Bossrepresents so much for me, especially as it pertains to my journey in the music industry. Honey, mama now can cut all the checks,” said Palmer with a laugh. “I’m very blessed and grateful to be able to have this tour and to be able to invest in myself in this way, and to come out here and see y’all and thank y’all for all the love you have shown me all these years.”
She spoke about theBig Bossfilm and how it chronicles her experiences with overbearing figures in the music industry, some of whom have attempted to take advantage of her at different points in her career.
“The gag motherf—ing is, they’re always trying to get the last laugh,” said Palmer, referencing one of her own memes. “I don’t care if you’re a singer, or a teacher, or a doctor, or a lawyer, or you do DoorDash, whatever it is. We know what it’s like to work with people that don’t like us and that we don’t like. But the gag is, when you stay focused on what it is you’re trying to do, you will always get the last laugh.“Detailing her past encounters with people who’ve turned out to be “a wolf in sheep’s clothing,” she told the crowd about lessons she’s learned: “Everybody’s not gonna come up to you and say, ‘Hey, I’m trying to take advantage of you,’ but what you feel is what you know, and that’s what I learned that I have to follow — what I feel, my instincts.”
Palmer’s personal life — especially new motherhood with sonLeodis Andrellton, born in February — played a major role in the show, as she then spoke directly to someone who’s helped her as of late: “I have to give a very special shout-out to Miss Beth up here. This is my lactation consultant. She got me throughbeing a mother.”
In that moment, she seemed to reference recent criticism from co-parent Darius Jackson, who criticized the outfit she wore to watchUsherperform at hisLas Vegas Residencyin July, writing on X (formerly Twitter) at the time, “It’s the outfit tho.. you a mom.”
While she changed into a second outfit, clips from her roles in projects includingAkeelah and the Bee,True Jackson, V.P.,Ice Age: Collision Course,LightyearandNope, among others, played on the screen to ravenous applause from the crowd.
“You used to tell me I’m beautiful / But now I don’t even know no more / It’s like you’re trying to be difficult / You never used to do this before,” she sings on the mid-tempo pop track,teased on TikTok last month.
Of the song’s fresh personal meaning, Palmer said, “We don’t like to go through hard times. We don’t like to go through ups and downs and the ways that life takes us, but boy, when we do, do we have a testimony.”
Palmer continued, “We wanna be so happy all the time and keep everything so bottled up, but it’s not true. It’s like that movieInside Out— you gotta let it go to get through it! And for me, that’s what ‘Ungorgeous’ is. It’s an opportunity to say, ‘Hey, I’m just not feeling it,’ and to share it with you guys, it means a lot because if you know how that feels, let me get an ‘Amen.’”
Later, in an unexpected moment, she exited the stage and entered the crowd to play a game with fans. Alongside a security guard, she went to the merchandise booth and asked audience members trivia questions about her career — includingScream Queens,Ice AgeandThat’s My Jam— in exchange for free t-shirts.
As the singer returned to the stage, she declared, “It ain’t over, motherf—ers.” Appropriately, Palmer ended the set with her song “Bossy,” again displaying her position as a skilled performer across countless mediums — as well as a powerful woman, mother and all-around boss.
source: people.com
