J Matt on Super Bowl XLVII Musical Peformances
Our very own J Matt had these things to say about the musical performances decorating Super Bowl XLVII
ALICIA KEYS: She was in her comfort zone: At a piano. Her arrangement, subdued with a calm Roberta Flack-ness, was just perfect on her. A capella would’ve been dangerous, since Keys usually struggles with her upper range and usually gets too gritty. But she overcame all obstacles and proved she was in good form vocally for the daunting task. No lip-synching, folks.
JENNIFER HUDSON with the SANDY HOOK CHOIR: What I found to be the greatest revelation coming away from this performance is just how parallel the stories of Hudson and the Sandy Hook kids are. Both know a thing or two about the abuse of gun violence. And this gospel-spiked performance, while echoing tidbits of hope for a better tomorrow, gave off the proper energies to usher in the healing. A stunning slim Hudson belted the song with Effie White vigor, as the choir – rocking back and forth with a Sunday morning innocence, supplied with lots of heart.
BEYONCE: Give her the props, already. She performed, entertained and brought on a ton of sexy for all the pigskin worshipers in TV land. The brief Destiny’s Child reunion also elevated the gravitas of her 12-minute show. But some important things could have helped made her halftime show into a serious Monday morning newspaper headline. She could have taken out the “End of Time” song and switched it with a bigger hit. Anything on the ‘4’ album should have been removed entirely, since none of the songs from that album cracked the Top 10. An appearance from hubby Jay-Z on “Crazy in Love” would’ve given her show a little more bragging rights. And those long pauses while taking in all those seconds of Nawlins air, allowing the fan to blow her hair seriously slashed into her time. Still, Bey did a fine job. And no lip-synching, at least that’s what I gathered.
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What’d I Say is a public opinion series focusing on recent events featuring commentary from our team of skillful writers and guest bloggers. The opinions expressed at this forum are the opinions of the individual author and may not reflect the opinions of the parent company HiFi Magazine.
