Commanding the stage with her own boldly unique sound, Ledisi brought fans to their feet as she rocked Baltimore’s historic Lyric Opera House.
The last stop on her first major tour as headliner, Baltimoreans experienced a Ledisi that has not been seen or heard in past performances or recordings. Comfortable and at ease on the stage, Ledisi danced and skatted away any doubts that she may have stepped into her light a second too soon.
“It was a lot of pressure because people see you in another way and they expect to see you how they normally do. I’ve never been able to showcase my full range and even that was another level for me,” said Ledisi in a phone interview. Pulling together the tour in less than one month’s time, Ledisi says her “biggest fear was that people would not get it, but they did.”
Armed with two soulful backup singers who at points commanded the show, and a band that rivals some of the funkiest acts in the country, Ledisi gave listeners every penny they paid for the show and then some. Leaving her all on the stage, Ledisi effectively re-baptized followers and converted unsuspecting first timers into faithful fans by mixing favorites from her previous albums with her latest Billboard Chart topping effort and single of the same name, Pieces of Me.
“This was my first experience with her live and it is a must!” said Wayne Spence, who was unfamiliar with the Ledisi before accompanying his sister, a longtime fan, to the event. “I would liken it to a family affair. I was very pleased with her level of energy and her ability to connect with the audience,” said Spence, who was also thoroughly impressed with Ledisi’s ability to hold her own while performing with a full band.
“Everybody is inspired by her humble spirit. She is singing about real issues, she’s very personal, and she has evolved over time,” said Danesha James, who credits Ledisi’s message of peace and hope with helping get her through long nights of studying “She’s so amazing and what you see is what you get. Listening to her you hear her album,” said James, referencing the voice that easily translates from the studio to the stage.
Mixing her jazzy vocals with hip hop and everything in between, the two-time Grammy nominated New Orleans native got her start in 2000 with the release of her first album, Soulsinger: The Revival. Followed Feeling Orange but Sometimes Blue (2002), Ledisi released both albums through her own independent record label, LeSun Records. After signing to Verve Records in 2007, Ledisi found mainstream success with Lost and Found and 2009’s Turn Me Loose. While it is clear that Ledisi has the natural ability to sustain in the cut throat business, like the many who have come before her, success came after being told she didn’t have the right look or sound to make it in the entertainment industry.
“I’m glad I never listened to the negative but looked at it for what it was and learned from it. It has made me stronger and who I have become today. There is nothing more special than being who you are and that will make you stand out,” said Ledisi.
“I’m honored and I feel like that’s the whole point of it all- to reach past where I thought I could reach.”
Ledisi will begin the European leg of her Pieces of Me tour in January 2012 while also preparing for the Walmart Road to Essence Tour 2012.
