It was onto a stroboscopically lit stage that JoJo made her entrance, which had just been briefly warmed up by her musicians and backing signers, who melodically began the performance with ‘Clovers’.
When she vocalised the first words, I found myself in the middle of a hysterical crowd. I found myself in the same exact state when I heard the first notes of Leave (Get Out) as the third song. I was surprised at her setlist choice, as I thought she would keep her old success for the end.
You see, people could say I live in the past, maybe a bit too much. I got very excited when JoJo announced she was coming to Montreal, for me; JoJo is still (and probably will always be) a 13 year old, singing some avant-gardiste Taylor Swift styled breakup songs. For me, hearing Leave and Too Little Too Late live were a valuable reason to attend the gig.
JoJo is a crowd pleaser. She tended to be very close to her fans, as she held many hands and sung whilst looking at people directly in the eye (or in the lens of their phone camera!). She knows how to make her fans feel special, taking the opportunity to sing like it was an intimate one on one event. She also knew how to make at least one spectator beyond happy, by taking him onto the stage where she blindfolded him as her backing vocalist tied him to a chair.
After asking him if he felt safe, she started performing a very suggestive lap dance on him. You could tell that the guy would never forget his privilege as he bit his lip.
The spectators became delirious, my jaw dropped as in my mind she’s still a teenager, remember, however the audience absolutely adored it.
Overall, it was a really good performance, technically and vocally. The Montreal crowd was faithful to its habit of being loud and cheerful, many of them singing along whilst others were probably just happy to listen to what she had to say. From the back of the floor, there’s no way I could have understood her speeches as everyone was so loud. It felt like the event was the meeting of two generations, the longterm teenager fans who’ve grown up with her from 2004 and the ones from 2016 who have always seen JoJo in this matured, more sensual light.
Review & photos – Arianne Bergeron
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