will.i.am, Fergie and the rest of the BEP members kicked off the charity show in high spirits and ended it without less enthusiasm despite the heavy rain.
- Oct 3, 2011
AceShowbiz - Black Eyed Peas's live concert at Central Park in New York City on September 30 was a huge success. Through the show which was held as a makeup date for their canceled gig last summer due to threat of dangerous weather, the R&B group raised $4 million from VIP ticket sales and corporate donations.
The will.i.am band kicked off the set with a futuristic "Rock That Body" performance before moving on to the next songs like "Imma Be", "Don't Stop the Party", and "Meet Me Half Way". They pumped up around 60,000 concertgoers which showed up on the Great Lawn for the Friday outdoor show.
Stacy Ferguson aka Fergie catered the crowd with her solo singles like "Glamorous" and "Big Girls Don't Cry" during her Peas-less set. will.i.am also got a solo set in a DJ booth, spinning remixes of Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit", Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'," and Guns N' Roses' "Sweet Child O' Mine".
Halfway through the concert, rain fell down and caused a few people to leave early, but the weather didn't deter the band to continue their show. Instead, they embraced the mother nature and urged their fans to do the same. "Ain't nothing wrong with a little bit of rain," will.i.am said. "The rain stopped us last time but it's not going to stop us this time...We don't take no for an answer."
So, the gig proceeded full force in the spirit of the charity which is a partnership between Chase Bank and the Robin Hood Foundation to help end poverty in NYC. One of the concertgoers even claimed, "The rain makes it even more magical." The rest of the night was filled with such songs as "Boom Boom Pow," "The Time (Dirty Bit)" and "I Got a Feeling".
They also charged into their worldwide smash hit "Where Is the Love?". Before playing the single, will.i.am shared the spirit of giving by sharing the story of how his bandmate apl.de.ap was adopted and moved from Phillippines to the U.S. Taboo chimed in, "Let's take this to my native Mexico, to the Philippines, and all over the world!"
Celebrities spotted coming to the show were Kim Kardashian and Kourtney Kardashian. The former rocked animal-printed outfit and thigh-high boots, while the latter donned blazer and high-waisted pants. Kim tweeted that night, "Black Eyed Peas concert in Central park is crazy! Fergie looks so G-L-A-M-O-R-O-U-S!!!"
