Shania: Now Tour

Just when I was celebrating Shania’s comeback with her fantastic Now album, Shania found herself at the centre of a controversy after a comment about voting for Trump, if she were an American citizen, in an interview with The Guardian.  That did NOT impress Twitter much, especially after Shania had just been a judge on RuPaul’s Drag Race, and people read her for filth, which I guess is understandable given the current political climate.   Shania soon took to Twitter to issue a formal apology which included the following statement: “I am passionately against discrimination of any kind and hope it’s clear from the choices I have made, and the people I stand with, that I do not hold any common moral beliefs with the current President”.  

Her response was unfortunate to say the least, and it left me wondering whether I should get tickets for her show in NYC.  However, I came to the following conclusions:  Shania is human and Lord knows, I have said things without thinking along with things that have been misinterpreted.  She also apologized for offending so many of fans and reaffirmed her anti-discrimination stance. The interview should have focused on her music: why ask her, a Canadian pop and country singer, about American politics?  One regrettable comment does not erase years of incredible music and for me, that is what her show is all about – the music.  So we bought tickets (the cost of which had dropped dramatically following the controversy) for Shania’s show at Barclays Center and man, I’m glad we did.

We arrived at Barclay’s midway through the opening act, Swiss artist Bastian Baker, amid cries from female audience members for him to take off his shirt (a request which was denied). He has good voice and certainly got the crowd warmed up for the main act.  He later returned to the stage to perform Shania’s duet, Party for Two, originally recorded as both a pop version with Mark McGrath and as a country version with Billy Currington.

Then, unexpectedly, Shania entered the arena from one of the entrances on the top level, slowly descending the stairs in a sparkling silver gown and cowboy hat.  She made her way through the audience to the stage and then opened the show with Life’s About to Get Good, the first single from Now while 5 cubes with colourful video projections moved around the stage; they seemed to glide and float into different positions throughout the show.  The stage and lighting people deserve a shoutout for their amazing work on this tour.  The cubes provided a mesmerizing backdrop for Shania and her dancers and gave the show an ultramodern feel.

Shania’s voice sounded incredible and it’s hard to imagine that she lost her singing voice from dysphonia and that it took years of therapy for her to regain the voice we’d come to know and love.  She took the audience on a journey through her career, one that included her country origins, pop crossover success and beautiful ballads, and the reflective and hopeful tracks from her latest album, the first in 15 years. One of the highlights when it came to her slower songs was when she performed Soldier, a song that pays tribute to those serving in the military.  She ascended from the stage seated on an open guitar case and floated above the delighted audience.  This was followed by a moving performance of You’re Still the One, while still suspended in the air.  Other highlights from the show included: That Don’t Impress Me Much, Don’t Be Stupid, Any Man of Mine and Man! I Feel Like a Woman, which was one of two encore songs that had the audience in a frenzy (the other being Rock This Country, which concluded the show).

Shania also looked amazing.  Throughout the high energy performance there was plenty of sparkle, cowboy boots and hats, flowing outfits that revealed a lot of leg and of course, leopard print.  I loved the look and feel of the show and it reminded me why I have been a Shania fan all these years. And I do love a good comeback story.