On Thursday, July 28, it was Atlanta’s turn to host the “Bad Man” tour. Headlined by Pitbull and supported by opener Prince Royce, the duo turned Philips Arena into a full-blown party.
But before the party could begin, the latin heart-throb Prince Royce performed a list of tracks that won over the women in attendance.
All of his songs were enjoyable but you could tell when he was going to focus on the ladies. Once he seemed comfortable in his set and the crowd came alive, he performed one of his many ballads “Te Robaré.” The women went crazy as he teased the crowd, lifting his shirt every so often to show off his six-pack.
As he focused his time towards the front of the stage, he leaned in towards a collective of young female fans and continued with the lyrics “Te besaré esta noche. Seras mia esta noche” (I’ll kiss you tonight. You’ll be mine tonight). The young man-bun sporting, Bronx-born Dominican, had ladies swooning with his every word.
The mix of salsa and bachata was a hit with the Atlanta audience.
After he took a short break, he quickly returned with a guitar and politely asked everyone to pull their phones out, “I want to see everyone’s flash right now.” So the arena lights dimmed and everywhere you looked, you could see LED dots all over the crowd thanks to their cell phones. So as he continued to play “Extraordinary” everyone obliged his request and waved their phones (flash on) as far as the eye could see.
One lucky lady was brought on stage to be serenaded. It was very apparent that this accomplishment had made her entire life. When Royce asked her if he could sing to her, her response (while out of breath from screening) was “You can do whatever you want!” As the arena erupted in laughter he continued to sing The Weeknd’s “Earned It” sending the young fan into hysteria (and this was before he kissed her with a rose in between their lips).
After Prince Royce performed his love ballad to that one lucky fan, he asked the crowd if they were ready for Pitbull. As the crowd erupted with applause, he was determined to see which side of the arena was the most hype to see Pitbull: The left, middle, or right. So the DJ played “Trap Queen” by Fetty Wap, “All the Way Up” by Joe and Remy Ma, and a salsa mix to see who was the loudest.
Once Royce ended his set, he thanked the crowd for having him (while topless of course) and just as quick as he came on stage, he walked to a platform and descended under the stage.
After a 20 minute DJ set, the lights blacked out and giant screens started showing biographical statistics about the main course for the evening (Pitbull). The funny thing was, we were able to read these notes on “Mr. Worldwide” while enjoying a very familiar background track. It was only appropriate that the King of Miami had an info movie with Miami Vice playing in the background (meaning Phil Collins’ “In the Air Tonight”). As the bio faded away, the Miami skyline appeared with a cool scene of surrounding bodies of water calmly waving to and fro.
And then boom, the crowd goes insane as the freshly dressed Dade County representative comes out in all-black and kicks-off his set with “Don’t Stop the Party.”
Every two or three songs, Pitbull, born Armando Christian Perez, would share stories about his early life and personal bits including immigrating from Cuba. He also took the opportunity to pay respect to ATL’s own Lil Jon, who played a big part in his discovery in the early 2000s.
If his various pauses to speak life to the arena served as insight into his life, it served more as a rest period from all of the dancing. His catalog would span hours on end if played continuously.
The minute Pitbull came on stage, the level of excitement peaked through the roof and never changed. With an awesome live band and gorgeous dancers, Mr. Worldwide proved why he’s deserving of such a title. With YouTube videos that have pierced the 8 billion views mark, he could’ve performed through the night until the next morning with his catalog of tracks. Instead he opted for party/club classics that received optimal acclaim from the fans (who he mentioned and thanked multiple times).
We heard popular tracks like “Fun” “Dance Again” “Live it Up” “Rain Over Me” “Bon, bon” “Fireball” “Meet Me at the Hotel Room” “Time of Our Lives” “Timber” and my favorite “Time of My Life.”
The “Bad Man” tour was as epic a concert as you’ll ever experience in life. On a personal note, this was a performance that broke into my Top 3 concerts of all-time. Partying, dancing, socializing, good vibes, wonderful atmosphere, and not a single, bad thing to say about the humble Miami native.
If you haven’t bought your tickets, you should do so.
Now.
-Jon J.