A childhood dream comes true

Aaron Carter hits Kingston with a handful of throwbacks

Aaron Carter takes the stage during a sold out show at The Mansion Monday night.
Aaron Carter takes the stage during a sold out show at The Mansion Monday night.

A horde of twenty-something girls was buzzing as they anxiously waited to fulfill their childhood dream, while I stood in the back of the room watching it all.

Thirty-five minutes of 90s-sounding “hip-hop” later, the infamous Carter brother eventually made a coy, but very belated, entrance as he sauntered to the stage. He opened with the classic hit ”I Want Candy” and the girls went unreasonably wild.

Aaron Carter enthusiastically belted out his 13-year-old hit version of the song, originally by The Strangeloves, as if it was just written yesterday — during which he jumped around the stage and even stopped to kiss a few audience members.

It’s unsure whether their excitement was due to Carter’s surprising gesture, or due to seeing a pop idol rise from the proverbial celebrity grave.

The set list consisted of a blend of older hits, covers and tunes off his upcoming album. After “Candy”, Carter transitioned into some newer material with a pop-rock sound — the type of thing you’d imagine a grown-up Aaron singing.

He incorporated several well-known hits into his songs, finishing one of them with a verse of Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing”.

It was an easy crowd-pleaser.

The show took a turn when Carter introduced a new song off his soon-to-be-released record. Titled “Let Go”, the singer gave his fans a look into his love life.

The “Aaron’s Party” singer narrated his heartbreak after the girlfriend he cheated on refused to give him a second chance, later admitting that the girl was “Hilary, not Lindsay.”

Despite the hand on his heart, the audience remained unresponsive.

Carter told the audience how eight years later, he’s still hung up on his teenage love, despite her being married and raising a son.

These feelings are depicted in the lyrics, “I gotta let go go go, she let go so long ago.”

After the heartfelt pop tune, Carter tossed on a fedora and broke out into Michael Jackson-inspired dance moves as he began his rendition of Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines”.

The throng of Aaron-fans bobbed their heads in excitement and danced along to the popular song. Carter seemed to enjoy the energy as he grasped the audience members’ hands, danced on stage and threw his sweaty towel into the crowd.

Carter continued to belt out covers, such as Bruno Mars’ “Treasure” and Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky” before returning to his own songs. He then changed on stage into an O’Neal jersey for his 2000 track “That’s How I Beat Shaq”.

Carter took a moment to thank his audience and remind them how long he’s been making music for — 18 years. After nearly a decade of not touring, his fans have remained loyal to the childhood star and excitedly gawked when he played “Aaron’s Party”.

The singer closed his sold-out show with a song off his forthcoming record, ”Where Do We Begin?”, an upbeat pop tune, and then promised to return to Kingston.

With an upcoming album and loyal fan-girls, Aaron Carter’s next show is sure to be memorable.

Tags

aaron carter, Concert review, Music

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