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Ivete Sangalo Concert
Last night (01Sept), my girlfriend Dardania & I went to see Ivete Sangalo at the DCU Center in Worcester, Mass. It was my first time seeing a Brazilian performer and it was a wonderful event. Ivete is one of the most popular from Brasil and I can see why. She puts on a great show and really reaches out to the audience. She loves and is so proud to be a Brasileira and her fans senses that and embraces her for it. The crowd loved virtually every minute of her two and a half plus hour show.
The only thing that I was disappointed in was the attendance. Based on her status as one of the premier entertainers from Brasil, the massive advertising on tv and in the newspapers for months and the amount of Brazilians who live in the area I would have bet the house that it would have been a sellout. When the tickets went on sale in June I believe I bought them the first minute they went on sale thinking I could get shutout. Sadly, I could have walked in off the street and bought the best seat in the house. The DCU Center I think holds 10-12 thousand or so and I'd say it was definiely less than half, I'm thinking 3.500 - 4.000 people. Although this didn't affect her excellent production, I can only imagine the energy level if the place was sold out.
My only guess to this is that the local economy has affected people more than I thought. I am aware that work has been increasingly difficult to find, so much so that many are actually moving back to Brasil. Also, these tickets were not cheap. I paid I think $80 or so a piece. Not out of line these days but when you have the choice of buying food or concert tickets, most will choose to buy food.
If anybody reading this is from New York City or will be there this weekend, Ivete Sangalo will be performing this Saturday night (04Sept) at Madison Square Garden. Especially with the massive Brazilian Day activities going on there with so many travelling there for it I am sure there will be more than 4.000 people there. I highly reccomend attending the show. The music was wonderful and the performance was a great production overall. Canadian singer Nelly Furtado will also appear.
Wherever you are, I hope everyone enjoys both the Labor Day & Brazilian Day weekend.
Jimmy
Ivete Sangalo crossing over?. I have been reading, including an article in the New York Times reviewing her Madison Square Garden concert Saturday evening speculating Sangalo's desire to "crossover" into the mainstream American entertainment scene. Both in various blog commentary & in the Times the consensus is that she is making an effort to be relevant in the USA. The Times said that the songs she sung in English came off a little bit awkward intimating she wasn't ready to pull a "Shakira". They also added her type of music from Bahia, based on the beat, etc. would also make it more difficult to make a break through.
My questions are; Do you think she is trying to break into the mainstream American market? If so, how well do you think she will do? Does she run the risk of alienating her fan base for potentially "selling out"? She is such an iconic performer in Brasil and fiercely loyal & proud to be a Brasileira that possibly focusing on America and beyond could compromise that.
It is my opinion that Sangalo is primariliy trying to maximize the Brazilian population living here in the USA. If she can expose herself to the American audience then all the better but it isn't an end all, be all. The three cities she recently performed in, Miami, Worcester (Boston) & New York City all have large Brazilian communities. If she had dates in Minneapolis or Omaha perhaps that would be a different story.
Foreign stars trying to crossover into the USA is rather difficult. Shakira smashed on the scene but Thalia who I thought would be fantastic never really took off. Personally, based on her age, style of music, etc., I think it will be tough for Sangalo to be a frontline performer here but she is so talented and such a pro that if she is precise, Sangalo can carve a nice, niche audience for herself. I look forward to hearing your thoughts. Muito obrigado.
Jimmy
Jimmy