Marc Anthony's Cambio de Piel Tour
With Joey Vega
American Airlines Arena, Miami
Friday, October 3, 2014
Better Than: A night salsa dancing at Mango's.
"Latinos, we always wait to the last minute," joked comedian Joey Vega as los rumberos at the American Airlines Arena waited for el Rey de la Salsa to put on the first of his two-night stand in the 305.
It may have all been a part of Vega's act, but Marc Anthony's opener wasn't kidding about the timing.
With the concert scheduled to start at 8 p.m., Anthony kept his fanáticos, a mix of salsa queens in sparkly skin-tight dresses and pumps of every kind, Abuelas, and papis in white pants, waiting an entire hour-and-a-half for him to make his appearance.
See also: Ten Best Salsa Acts in the World
There may have been a 90-minute delay, but Anthony seemed to know his fans very well, as did Vega.
"Where are las mujeres bellas?" asked Vega as every lady in the crowd raised her hand. "I saw some feitas, but that's OK."
As Vega continued observing the crowd, he pointed out a fairly empty gap in the arena.
"Los que están tarde, esos son mi gente," he laughed, alluding to Latinos and our trouble understanding the concept of time.
"Where are my Boricuas?" La gente screamed.
"Donde están los Cubanos?" The crowd lost total control.
"Holy shit."
After 30 minutes of cracking on every Latino stereotype, the crowd slowly trickled in and Vega left Anthony's number one fans ready for la pachanga.
Moments later, the crew of background singers and musicians walked onto the circular rotating stage smack in the heart of the floor. The arena went black as blue lights flashed to the beat of the drum.
There was the former Mr. J Lo, in black shades and a matching suit.
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The crowd went apeshit as el cantante sang one of his most popular songs of all time, "I Need To Know." With nothing but a full band of guitarists, percussionists, singers, trumpets, trombones, and a keyboardist, Anthony's energy and salsa moves did not disappoint.
"¡Mi gente!" he yelled as he thrust his hips and got footloose on stage. "Check it out, baby."
It may have only been the second song of the night, but not a body in the arena, which at this point was filled to the rim, was sitting down when Anthony performed "Valió La Pena."
Every single person at the AAA, even those with absolutely no rhythm and who had no idea what the hell Anthony was saying, was shaking their ass y bailando.
"Buenas noches," the singer went on. "It's a pleasure. I don't have any words. Thank you for letting me spend the night with you all. We're gonna play a little bit of everything - old, new, some inventions."
"This next song, it's one of my favorites. It's the first time we play it. Check it out."
With the sound of the keyboard and congas, Anthony began crooning his fave hit, "Flor Pálida." The music started off like a sweet melody, but built up to una tremenda descarga de música.
"I feel like I'm home," el salsero smiled as he stared at his number one fans. "I feel like I'm with family. It's like we're at a barbecue y yo soy el primo que canta."
While Anthony perfectly summed up the vibe of the night, some people felt the need to take a break from all that ass shaking.
"Why are some of you sitting down? This is a salsa concert. Get up!"
The music definitely got the people bailando, but Anthony's energy and crowd interaction is what la gente seemed to really enjoy.
"¿Donde estan las mujeres?" he asked. "I ask because this next song is one of my favorites. It was recorded a long time ago with some lady that eh, no me caie bien. You with me?"
Wait, Marc, were you talking about your baby momma? We had no idea.
After throwing some more shade at J Lo, he went on to sing his solo rendition of "Vivir Lo Nuestro."
There were no hard feelings, though - Anthony just kept on with the show and even had an on-stage water fight with his band during "Contra La Corriente."
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But a Marc Anthony concert in Miami wouldn't be complete with a special cameo ... Like Tito El Bambino and the ever-loved Carlos Vives.
After almost two hours of show time, el concierto was reaching its end.
"I dedicate this song to all of you." And like that, the band and Anthony honored Miami with "Mi Gente."
The arena went dark when the song finished, but los fanáticos de Marc didn't buy it. They knew he was gonna come out for an encore.
As expected, Anthony hit the stage for one more song, "Tu Amor Me Hace Bien." The people loved it, but even then, the crowd didn't buy it. I mean, how dare he finish a concert and not perform like his most popular song of the year?
"¿Una mas?" Anthony teased.
We thought so.
As he finished off with "Vivir Mi Vida," the crowd was pleased. "Life is yours. You gotta live it."
After two hours, the party animals at the AAA danced their way outta the arena. Let's just say, after watching Marc Anthony in concert for the first time, we can say we've never seen a man make 20,000 people bailar y cantar the way Anthony did.
Critic's Notebook
Marc Anthony's Setlist
-"I Need To Know"
-"Valió La Pena"
-"Y Hubo Alguien"
-"Hasta Ayer"
-"Flor Pálida"
-"Abrázame Muy Fuerte"/"Ahora Quien"
-"Vivir Lo Nuestro"
-"Contra La Corriente"
-"¿Por Qué Les Mientes?"
-"Te Conozco Bien"
-"Cuando Nos Volvamos a Encontrar"
-"Mi Gente"
Encore
-"Tu Amor Me Hace Bien"
-"Vivir Mi Vida"
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