Ashanti first entered the charts with her self named debut album, ‘Ashanti’ back in April 2002, featuring the incredible hits of ‘Baby’, ‘Happy’ and her debut single, ‘Foolish’.
It was evident from that album that she was not just an artist of the moment, but one who would stand in history for some amazing songs of her own, and written for other incredible performers.
After creating top 10 hits that we’ve grown to know and love featuring artists from Ja Rule, Notorious BIG, 2Pac and Fat Joe just to name a few, Ashanti has stood the test of time in the RnB game as one of the industry greats.
Fast forward 20 years, the announcement we had all been anticipating was made; Ashanti was bringing a tour to the UK to celebrate the 20 year milestone. Not only was she touring, but she was bringing along two stand-out male RnB singers with her, Mario and Trey Songz.
Mario darted in to the UK charts when he was just 15 years old. His smooth RnB vocals and charm were and still are a hit with UK listeners. After releasing a further four successful albums, he’s still a much-loved artist who appears to have left his baggy jeans back in the noughties, thankfully.
Trey Songz, formally known as Tremaine Aldon Neverson, has released eight studio albums, two EPs, seven mixtapes and fifty-nine singles (including thirty as a featured artist). His music has sold an overall 25 million records worldwide in singles and albums. Known for creating ‘baby making music’, his smooth and impressive vocal range will always be a hit with the ladies, me included.
Here we take a look at, quite clearly, our reviewers' night of a lifetime getting to witness these three artists all under one roof, all on our doorstep in Manchester.
I was lucky enough to be invited to ‘Ashanti + friends’ final UK tour date, in none other than the AO Arena, Manchester, UK, which has a seating capacity of 21,000.
The vibe from the crowd was phenomenal, with a variety of ages attending.
Mario came on the stage at 7:20pm to a ripple of screams from the audience, standing tall with his microphone stand elevated and wearing all white. He kick started the night with his smash hit “Just A Friend”.
Fifteen year old me couldn’t contain the excitement; the amount of times I listened to his album on my portable CD player, stuffed inside my school blazer pocket, whilst trying to create his dance moves, and now here he is, stood right in front of me and he hasn’t aged a day!
One lucky lady was chosen by Mario to get up on the stage. There she was, perched on a stool, whilst he serenaded her in nothing but his trousers. The thousands of women there, myself included were not jealous at all, not one tiny bit…
Trey Songz then graced the stage at 8:30pm, dressed in a cream satin co-ord and sporting his trademark shades, which he probably needed with the amount of camera flashes aimed in his direction.
The crowd were completely in awe of his powerful voice and shown their appreciation as soon as he took centre stage. He began his set with 'Can’t Help But Wait' from his 2007 album, ‘Trey Day’.
After an outfit change in to dark cargo pants and a partially open black and white striped shirt, Trey continued to deliver an exceptional performance, with hits like 'Na Na', 'Say Aah' and 'Bottoms Up'. He definitely brought the party to the AO Arena.
The most impressive performance from Trey was 'Slow Motion'. His ability of performing this song live is unreal, with his versatile RnB vocals and hitting the highest of notes with ease. Wow, what a guy.
Last but not least, it was time for the headline act to rock the crowd. As the crowd eagerly awaited for Ashanti to take to the stage, we were treated to a live DJ set, delivering all of the goods from the 90s/2000s, and it proved to be an excellent way of keeping the crowd in high spirits.
Ashanti may claim that she’s not always there when you call, but that she’s always on time. The lights dimmed 20 minutes after her scheduled performance time, however I can assure you that it was absolutely worth the wait.
The arena attendees went crazy for it, and there was a eruption of screams and hollering as Ashanti was spotlighted at the top of the stairs on the stage.
She looked incredible, sporting a red leotard with a very fitting UK flag in a tasteful nod to the jubilee bank holiday, teamed up with a cropped leather jacket, black thigh high boots and a 5ft long pony tail. At 41 years of age, she definitely goes by the motto of “if you’ve got it, flaunt it”, and good on her!
Ashanti started the night off in style alongside her four dancers with her smash hits 'Happy', 'Leaving' and 'Only You'. You could see her passion and appreciation within her performance, and how she does not take her success for granted.
I, amongst others, eagerly awaited her performance of 'Baby', and here’s why: Manchester's home-grown rapper, Aitch released his own version, sampling the track and vocals to create his very own smash hit. As we were in Manchester, there was lots of speculation as to whether he would make an appearance in his home town.
Ashanti performed her 2002 version of the song and at the end of the performance, made the following statement:
“Yeaaaah, you know what Manchester? Ya’ll been rocking with me for so long, that record came out like 20 years ago. We in 2022, and I got my people with me in the building tonight ya’ll!”
The crowd went quiet for a second, until the track started playing; fans started screaming, and there he was, Aitch walking on from the right hand side of the stage. Microphone in hand and shouting to the crowd “Hey Manchester, what’s going on!” Ashanti asked the crowd to make some noise for Aitch, but it was evident that his home crowd had his back already, and the noise and atmosphere from the crowd was wild.
After performing the 2022 version of 'Baby', we were treated to an extra few minutes of Aitch whilst he performed his featuring 2020 smash hit, 'Strike a Pose'. If you’ve been living under a rock, Aitch announced his first UK & European tour in May 2022.
He will be performing in Manchester's O2 Victoria Warehouse on 24th and 25th October 2022, however if you haven’t secured your tickets already, then I’m afraid you’ve missed out. All of his UK tour dates have fully sold out, and I’m not surprised. He’s well and truly been the man of the moment for the UK up and coming rap scene.
Ashanti closed the night performing 'Foolish', with footage of the music video being played behind her. At one point, Ashanti held the microphone out to the crowd and we gave her the performance of our lives, singing her song back to her word for word. What an unreal moment that was for us and especially for her. The song was blended with the remix version of 'Unfoolish' ft Biggie Smalls, and it was the perfect way to end a perfect night.
Ashanti was presented with her name on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on 7th April 2022 and rightly so. Her contribution to the music industry and acting is highly thought of. Here’s to hoping we see much more of Ashanti over the next few decades.
Until then, we have the memories of tonight to cherish forever.
