It might not be fair to compare an artist like Rihanna to herself of four years ago, but it was difficult to watch her performance in Abu Dhabi on Saturday night and not think back to New Year’s Eve 2009 at Emirates Palace (remember when they used to hold concerts there?).
On that night, she was unknown territory, it being just a few months after her beating at the hands of Chris Brown. She was vulnerable, strong, emotional and raunchy. Since then, she’s sold millions more records. And still, she was vulnerable, strong, emotional and raunchy. But sadly, not quite as engaging.
With massive crowds at the du Arena, one would have thought she’d have them in the palm of her hand, yet it was a struggle for Rihanna to get them to sing along to anything other than the biggest hits. Perhaps it didn’t help that she opened, later than expected, with an album track (Unapologetic’s Phresh Out The Runway) that didn’t exactly grab the crowd’s attention.
Four tracks later, and she had already walked off stage, and we were treated to a guitar solo by a sweaty, long-haired band member. Did I mistakenly walk into a Guns’n’Roses show?
When she returned, she was still in the same baggy white trousers, white hightop trainers and white cap-and-veil combo, which she continued to wear until she changed for the encore. While at first I felt short-changed by this lack of fashion pizzazz, by the end of the night I released it was part of a refreshingly gimmick-free performance.
The staging was simple, the dancers in the shadows, with the spotlight firmly on her and she danced and thrusted her way around, sometimes singing, sometimes lipsynching, and not really disguising that she wasn’t doing the main vocals on some songs.
Another moment in which to feel short-changed — as audiences on some of her other tour stops have reported.
There were high points, however, especially when it came down to the ballads, such as current hit What Now, Stay (for which she sang both parts) and her single encore track, Diamonds, Rihanna’s vocals shone bright, with minimal backing and instruments. And her progression from R’n’n princess to club queen appears to be complete, with the booty-shaking Man Down, Rude Boy and What’s My Name finding less of a reception — but that was before the night exploded into a sea of lasers, flashing wristbands (given to everyone in the audience) and David Guetta/Calvin Harris beats.
