George Michael, Alicia Keys rock the capital

Pop legend George Michael and R&B/soul singer and songwriter Alicia Keys turned the Abu Dhabi Zayed Sports City Stadium into a giant club on Monday night, giving their near 30,000 fans two unforgettable performances.  

The stars entertained their audience for more than three-and-a-half hours. This was their first time performing together in the UAE.

Nine-time Grammy Award winner, Keys, 27, opened the night with Go Ahead from her latest 2007 album, As I Am, followed by hits like Fallin’, A Woman’s Worth and How Come You Don’t Call Me from Songs in A Minor (2001), You Don’t Know my Name, Diary and Karma from The Diary of Alicia Keys (2003), and Superwoman, Like You’ll Never See Me Again and Teenage Love Affair (As I Am).

Keys has sold over 30 million albums worldwide and has won numerous awards, including 11 Grammy Awards, 17 Billboard Music Awards and five American Music Awards.

“We’re so glad to be in the beautiful Abu Dhabi,” she told her cheering audience. Dressed in tight black high-waist pants with white T and black suspenders, she seemed completely at ease as she enjoyed the adulation of her fans.

The talented American artist exited backstage after singing an acoustic version of Fallin’. But the crowd clapped and cheered long enough for her to return and perform the long-awaited hit No One for which her last album received two Grammys this year.

The star of the evening, however was George Michael. Performing at his last tour concert, the final stop on his 25 Live Tour, Michael 45, showed that he remains the energetic showman and talented singer and songwriter he’s always been.

During his two part performance, with a 20-minute break in between, Michael shook the stadium – spanning three generations – with hits from his global, multi-award winning albums, Fastlove, Faith, Listen Without Prejudice, Father Figure, Older and Patience.

Wearing his famous elegant stage attire, a black suit jacket and black trousers, and sunglasses, Michael wowed his hordes of adoring fans with his enthusiastic moves and incredible voice.

With five screens displaying movie shots and figures like JF Kennedy, Marilyn Monroe and Maria Callas the stage was a spectacle when Michael belted Star People and Flawless and Spinning the Wheel.

The concert had no dull moment as Michael alternated between slow and fast songs, keeping the audience captivated and dancing, under a beautiful set of spotlights.

“He’s been very energetic,” said Andrew from the UK.

Many people were still eager to hear Faith and Careless Whisper at the break. They didn’t have to wait for long as the star opened the second part of his show with Faith, which made the fans go crazy and transformed the stadium into a mega dance floor.

For the slow songs, Michael sat on a stool at the front of the runway, right in the midst of the audience. That way, he performed a beautiful cover of Nina Simone’s Feeling Good, beginning a cappella.

A few minutes later, he was back on his feet running toward the centre stage, wearing black jeans, a black T shirt and a grey blazer, for Amazing, which had everyone singing along and shaking on heavy techno beats.

Michael has enjoyed one of the most successful and enduring careers in the history of pop music, having sold over 110 million records worldwide and achieving seven US number one singles, 11 number one British singles and six number one albums. In the 25 years of his musical career, he has also played at some of the biggest and most important concerts in history – Live Aid, the Nelson Mandela Freedom Concert and the Freddie Mercury Tribute – all in front of capacity audiences.

For his last scheduled song, Let’s Go Outside, he wore a police officer shirt with police-style sunglasses while a virtual helicopter was flying on the back screens with police sirens going on. Then he thanked his fans for their support over the past 25 years and left.

But the crowd wasn’t to let an encore pass by, and after much noise, Michael came back on stage for two of his biggest hits, Careless Whisper and Freedom. “Let’s sing that one together,” he said at the beginning of Careless Whisper.