There are some artists whose studio work doesn’t even begin to showcase their magic. Andra Day falls into that category.  Please don’t misunderstand me, she sounds great on record, but live? Live, she’s on a different level. When she first came out, I immediately thought of Amy Winehouse because of the tone of her voice, but Andra Day is better. What makes her better is the clarity, and range of her voice along with her musicality.  On March 24th, I had the privilege of seeing and hearing her live at the Ardmore Music Hall and let me tell you, it was the best $17.00 I’ve ever spent, yes $17.00. Side note to Andra if she should ever read this: you are under charging for your caliber of talent. She was amazing. Her voice was clear as a bell.  Her band was fantastic and shout out to her drummer who was playing the drums, the tambourine, and she shakers at the same time.  When I see a live band I always look at the drummer and the bass player for they are the groove and the pulse of the music.  She came out in what I believe were pajamas along with a stole, hair up in her signature look and her face was flawless. (even after she removed her make up live on stage) I really felt like I was watching a jazz great from back in the day complete with her retro microphone.  She played a nice set with songs from her catalogue as well as from Nina Simone and Michael Jackson.  She also performed a different take on some hip hop classics giving them a jazzy flare.  Those jazz runs she does gave me the musical holy ghost.  Y’all know what I’m talking about. Have you ever heard a song, a voice or a lyric that makes you all tingly inside? That’s the musical holy ghost. I would gladly spend good money to see her again.

Let’s talk opening acts.  I was pleasantly surprised with the talent that Andra brought along with her as I was not familiar with either act.  One artist was an Aussie by the name of Conrad Sewell. I was really impressed with him.  Imagine a Michael Jackson falsetto, with a little bit of rocker mixed in.  He’s also a good song writer as well.  He even performed a song for us Philly folks by the Philly artist Musiq Soulchild (nice touch) His performance along with his band created a nice acoustical feel. I will be looking to see what else I can find of his because I am definitely a fan.

The first artist to perform was a young lady named Saleka.  I didn’t know it at the time but found out shortly after the show started that she is M. Night Shyamalan’s 19 year old daughter.  It was just her and her piano and what really impressed me was her songwriting skills.  Each of the songs she sang told a great story and they were told from a mature perspective which is what I’m always drawn to.  She has a very sweet tone and her falsetto is where she really shines.  She also came back out later with  Andra and sang a song called “Mr. Incredible” which I really liked.  She is absolutely adorable and I look forward to hearing more from her.

Needless to see this was a jam packed show and I enjoyed every minute of it.  If you like Andra Day this is something you should not miss. If you’re not familiar with her music, go anyway because if you love music, LIVE music especially, you’re in for a great show and if anything you’ll leave with some new songs to add to your playlists.