BIEBER. A nod or a grin from him was all it took for his fans to go wild. JIM GUIAO PUNZALAN
AS EXPECTED, Canadian teen pop sensation Justin Bieber’s concert at the Mall of Asia was jampacked, with mostly young girls and their parents in rapt attendance. The “Beliebers” had definitely caught the Bieber fever, the first symptom of which being a unison of ear-splitting screams at any movement onstage. The energy was high, and the girls were revved up as they eagerly waited for their idol.
And, wait they had to for a little longer. Before Bieber came the Poreotics, an all-male dance crew from California and the champion of “America’s Best Dance Crew’s” fifth season. Three of its six members are Filipinos, while the others are Vietnamese. Their seamless robotic and popping moves and creative choreography had the audience cheering. But, the Beliebers couldn’t be distracted for long—so, after the Poreotics’ final number, the girls started chanting, “Bieber! Bieber! Bieber!”
DJ Tay James came out and asked the crowd if they were ready to see Justin. The deafening answer: “Yes!” Then, a timer went up on the screen onstage. When there were just 15 seconds to go, the crowd started counting down as one—and out came Justin!
<strong>Gravelly voice</strong>
Dressed in a shiny white, tracksuit-like ensemble, the singer started out by singing “Love Me,” followed by “Bigger.” Then, he flirted with the audience before launching into “U Smile.” At this point, it became quite evident that Justin was “fatigued,” with his singing a bit strained and his voice gravelly.
But, the Beliebers didn’t seem to mind at all—a nod or a grin from Justin was all it took for them to go wild and scream again! Any quip or joke, no matter how weak, sent the girls shrieking! I guess you have to be a tween or teen to fully grasp this, because there was really nothing special about his singing, dancing and music.
Justin took a break from all the pumped-up dancing and sat to play a guitar. He sang “Never Let You Go,” Edwin McCain’s “I’ll Be” and “Favorite Girl.” A girl from the crowd got to sit with Justin, who handed her a bouquet of flowers and serenaded her with “One Less Lonely Girl.” Thousands of girls weren’t too happy about that! Then, the screen showed video clips from Justin’s childhood, as well as his YouTube recordings.
He came back wearing a new set of clothes—still shiny but black, this time around. After several songs, he introduced his backup singers, Legaci, and proudly announced that they were all Filipinos and, just like him, had been discovered on YouTube. The quartet wowed the crowd with their superb blending, while Justin changed into yet another outfit—this time, in red and black.
<strong>Backup dancers</strong>
He sang a few more songs, then called his backup dancers. As they were introduced, each of his band’s members got to play solo, followed by Justin at the drums, playing well enough for even the doubters to applaud.
With its upbeat tempo, “Eenie Meenie” had the girls jumping around again. When the teenage singer capped the concert with “Pray,” it felt anticlimactic. But, it wasn’t the end yet, because the crowd kept chanting for more!
Then, Justin came out and asked his fans what they wanted to hear—and they answered “Baby!” No surprise there, the Beliebers would’ve gone home very disappointed, had he failed to sing their favorite song!