Current:Home > MySam Smith soothes and seduces on Gloria tour: 'This show is about freedom'-InfoLens
Sam Smith soothes and seduces on Gloria tour: 'This show is about freedom'
View Date:2024-12-23 14:46:35
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Sam Smith wanted to make one thing apparent from the beginning.
“This show is many things,” they said from the stage at Capital One Arena. “But this show is about one thing: freedom.”
Smith, who uses they/them pronouns, said this clad in gold lamé pants, a sparkly corset looped through a black tie and Elton John-worthy sequined boots with a prominent heel.
They had just finished the opening salvo of “Stay With Me” and “I Know I’m Not the Only One” – two major hits that most artists would hold until later in a nearly two-hour show. But Smith’s freedom extends inward, and this tour, named for their fourth album, “Gloria,” is a frisky, confident excursion smartly balanced with aching ballads and thumping dance songs.
At Friday’s show in Washington, D.C., a few dates into the U.S. Gloria run that will continue into September, Smith, 32, exuded genial star power and offered immaculate vocals. Joining the current trend of segmenting concerts by theme, Smith, a four-piece band and a trio of superb backup singers, cruised through three acts – Love, Beauty and Sex – keeping the full arena pivoting from heartache to exuberance.
Here are some highlights from the Gloria tour.
Looking for Taylor Swift tickets for 2024?: We've got tips to help you buy them
Sam Smith can still sell a ballad
The five-time Grammy winner was briefly sidelined during the European leg of the tour in May when a vocal cord injury forced the cancellation of a couple of shows.
Smith’s buttery instrument is back to its soaring beauty, exemplified first during the acoustic guitar-strummed “Too Good At Goodbyes,” performed sitting with their backup singers.
But the start of the Beauty act presented a showstopper, with Smith in a sliver and white taffeta ball gown, standing under a stage top rimmed in purple lighting. The setting was lovely, but Smith’s voice during “Kissing You” was nearly prayerful as it vibrated with emotion, simultaneously soothing and stirring. The moment was chill-inducing and continued when Smith introduced LaDonna – one of their backing vocalists – to join them on “Lay Me Down.” Their voice swelled with a beautiful ache while LaDonna offered glistening vocal accouterments.
Smith can also turn up the heat
Early in the show, Smith, the sparkly glitter on their chest apparent, twirled and swayed their hips during “How Do You Sleep?” and “Dancing with a Stranger.”
But those were merely warm-ups.
During “Gimme,” a sextet of dancers in sheer sparkles swarmed the stage, writhing on the massive gold statue of a recumbent Aphrodite – the goddess of love – that stretched across the stage.
Smith towered above the dance crew in black pants and a ruffled black shirt, pumping their fists to the propulsive beat. As the rhythm intensified, Smith joyfully shook their rear at the ecstatic crowd as the music segued into “Lose You,” a sweaty mixture of swirling lights, unrelenting beats and carnal pleasure between a couple of female dancers.
Smith dresses to impress … and to remember
As the club vibe continued into the stomper “I’m Not Here to Make Friends,” Smith was draped in a massive, Barbie-pink robe, singing happily while being fanned by their dancers.
But if the corset and ball gown of the early parts of the show weren’t striking enough, the saucy attire for – of course – “Unholy” riveted. A top hat with devil horns, fishnets, a bikini bottom and thigh-high black boots completed Smith’s look, leaving the audience with a memorable closer and more proof of how much Smith is enjoying their freedom.
Back to the '80s:Culture Club, Howard Jones and Berlin combine for a night of nostalgic fun
veryGood! (231)
Related
- Hurricane forecasters on alert: November storm could head for Florida
- Packers vs. Giants Monday Night Football live updates: Odds, predictions, how to watch
- Florida school board may seek ouster of Moms for Liberty co-founder over Republican sex scandal
- Mexico’s president vows to eliminate regulatory, oversight agencies, claiming they are ‘useless’
- Why Amanda Seyfried Traded Living in Hollywood for Life on a Farm in Upstate New York
- Former NHL player, coach Tony Granato reveals cancer diagnosis
- The Excerpt podcast: Appeals court upholds Trump gag order in election interference case
- Los Angeles Lakers to hang 'unique' NBA In-Season Tournament championship banner
- Could trad wives, influencers have sparked the red wave among female voters?
- Miami Dolphins WR Tyreek Hill suffers ankle injury, but returns vs. Tennessee Titans
Ranking
- 'Climate change is real': New York parks employee killed as historic drought fuels blazes
- How the 2016 election could factor into the case accusing Trump of trying to overturn the 2020 race
- Teacher, CAIR cite discrimination from Maryland schools for pro-Palestinian phrase
- Austrian authorities arrest 16-year-old who allegedly planned to attack a Vienna synagogue
- Kyle Richards Swears This Holiday Candle Is the Best Scent Ever and She Uses It All Year
- Ram, Infiniti, Ford among 188,000 vehicles recalled: Check car recalls here
- Tensions between Congo and Rwanda heighten the risk of military confrontation, UN envoy says
- Florida’s university system under assault during DeSantis tenure, report by professors’ group says
Recommendation
-
Love Actually Secrets That Will Be Perfect to You
-
Narges Mohammadi, Iranian activist and Nobel peace prize winner, to go on new hunger strike as prize is awarded
-
Man sues NYC after he spent 27 years in prison, then was cleared in subway token clerk killing
-
Packers vs. Giants Monday Night Football live updates: Odds, predictions, how to watch
-
Early Week 11 fantasy football rankings: 30 risers and fallers
-
Watch: Florida bear goes Grinch, tramples and steals Christmas lawn decorations
-
Vivek Ramaswamy Called ‘the Climate Change Agenda’ a Hoax in Alabama’s First-Ever Presidential Debate. What Did University of Alabama Students Think?
-
Raven-Symoné Mourns Death of Brother Blaize Pearman After Colon Cancer Battle