Concert promoter says Whitney Houston should be appreciated for performing live despite her shaky voice when singing some of the songs.
- Feb 24, 2010
AceShowbiz - Whitney Houston kicked off the Australian leg of her "Nothing But Love" tour at Brisbane Entertainment Centre Monday, February 22 and she got mixed reviews from the concertgoers. Some of them were disappointed over her shaky voice, while the others put on happy faces when leaving the venue once the light was off.
Whitney who opened the gig with an upbeat song, "For the Lovers", from her comeback album "I Look to You" was slammed by those walking out of the show early for taking long breaks in between songs and coughing through some of her performances. "It was so sad and disappointing. Out of breath, incoherent, barely sung any full songs and butchered the ones she did," a fan wrote to The Courier Mail.
Meanwhile, another music fan told the publication that the show actually went great. "I had seats a few rows from the stage and the energy was amazing. Yes, she missed some high notes but she still has an amazing voice," the fan testified.
Concert promoter Andrew McManus also stepped up defending Whitney, saying "I saw the whole show. Was it an A? No, it was probably a B+." He continued, "It was not a train wreck. She was hitting most of the notes, yes her throat was a little croaky. Her health is fine but she's also not 22 years of age anymore."
"This is a tough country, you're going to be critiqued on your performance. At the end of the day it's not like the other act who was just here who didn't sing a note, she sang every single note. -- She performed all her hits. She did everything we promoted and said she'd do. It was a great performance. This is an icon of the business who hit rock bottom and is fighting back, instead of slamming her we should be praising her."
Indeed, Whitney Houston is not the first artist getting criticized Down Under. Back in November 2009, Britney Spears was blasted for delivering lip-sync performances in the nation which led her manager Adam Leber to fight off the unfavorable reports.
Whitney herself still has five more live concerts in Australia and will next be seen rocking Acer Arena in Sidney on February 24. After finishing the Australian leg, she will fly to Paris and a number of major cities across Europe for a series of shows.
