As this generation’s Sinatra, the devilishly charismatic vocal sensation Michael Buble swayed and charmed his way into the hearts of his Korean fans during his first concert in Korea.
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Michael Buble performs his first concert in Korea at the Jamsil Indoor Stadium in Seoul on Wednesday. (CJ E&M) |
Sexy, suave and debonair, Buble took to the stage Wednesday at the Jamsil Indoor Stadium in a chic black suit and bowtie, surrounded by flames for his opening numbers, “Fever” and “Just Haven’t Met You Yet.”
After his first two performances, the vocalist greeted the thousands of fans who flocked to see the four-time Grammy Award winner. Buble apologized to the audience for taking such a long time to hold his first concert on the peninsula and reassured fans that we would return.
Aside from what was to be expected from his live performance ― a touch of glitz and glam, popular jazzy pop singles and, of course, slowing it down with a sprinkle of romance ― what came as a more surprise was Buble’s sense of humor.
“I hope you like the fire at the beginning of the show,” he said with his signature cheeky smile. “It’s so expensive. So just so you know, the rest of the night is going to be sh― because I have no more money.”
Throughout the night Buble provided quick-witted and light-hearted humor, as well as some risque whimsy, which took some audience members by surprise.
“We are going to start off real slow, real slow ... and if this all goes well, then we will have dirty sex in the car,” he said prior to his performance of Otis Redding’s “Try a Little Tenderness.” The singer also encouraged all of the single people in the audience to use his concert as an opportune time to propose a threesome with couples who came out to see the show.
But probably one of the most hysterical moments of the night was Buble’s impromptu and off-scripted interactions with the audience. After witnessing a die-hard fan dancing his heart out in the audience, Buble couldn’t help but pause and call him out.
"In 174 shows and 33 countries, I have never fallen in love with a man before, but...” he said as cameras zoomed in on a man near the front.
Buble stated that he simply couldn't help himself and invited the man up on stage. The startled audience member ran full-sprint, jumped and hugged the singer, wrapping his legs around him before performing a crowd-pleasing freestyle dance number as Buble and his band threw out a beat.
The singer, also no stranger to showing off his dance moves, then went on to surprise his Korean fans with his short attempt at singing local K-pop star Taeyang’s hit R&B single, “Eye, Nose, Lips,” per the request of some of his Korean Instagram followers.
Following his attempt at singing the chorus line in Korean, the singer shifted gears and went on to perform one of his most popular singles, “Everything” and “That’s All.”
Near the end of the show, Buble brought out his string section and announced that the next song was dear to his heart as the “most romantic” song he knew.
“My grandparents danced to it at their wedding 60 years ago, so I am going to sing the song the way it deserves to be sung,” he said.
But what came next was a rendition of the Backstreet Boys’ ’90s hit “Everybody.” The audience members burst into laughter and sang along in nostalgia.
Aside from his own songs, Buble also sang a number of popular tunes alongside American a capella group Naturally 7, the singer’s support act. Together the vocals performed Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky,” The Temptations’ “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg” and The Beatles’ “All You Need is Love.”
After leaving the stage, he returned with three encores including “Cry Me a River,” “Save the Last Dance” and ended the night with Leon Russell’s classic 1970s hit, “A Song for You.” Buble’s rendition, in which he sang off mic for a portion in the most poetic of forms, was the perfect close to the 2 1/2-hour show.
By Julie Jackson (
juliejackson@heraldcorp.com)
