Disney child star and pop sensation Selena Gomez beamed with positivity and class as she brought her Stars Dance Tour to Bridgestone Arena Friday night.
Cut from the same cloth as tongue dangling, Miley Cyrus, who recently turned heads with her 2013 MTV VMA performance, Gomez managed to keep it classy while she barreled through her 80 minute set Friday night. Gomez was on a mission to instill to those 8,000 in attendance that you do not have to be oversexed and underdressed to be successful.
“Parents, don’t worry, I’m not gonna pull a Miley tonight. I've always been told I need to be more sexy or do things a certain way and the only way I know to be sexy is to be classy,” said Gomez before performing her big hit “Who Says.”
Gomez sang songs from all three of her albums with her former band The Scene, including the hits “Love You Like A Love Song,” “Round and Round” and “Naturally.” The most unexpected moment of the show was Gomez offering a very straight forward cover of Katy Perry’s current number one song “Roar.” Gomez rounded out her 20 song set list with her first number song and summer dance hit “Come & Get It” and current dance hit “Slow Down.”
For those who missed the Stars Dance tour, they will have to wait a couple of years. Gomez recently announced she will be departing from the music scene to focus on her acting career. However, I am sure one of her opening acts, YouTube sensation Christina Grimmie, will be gladly help fill her shoes.
Grimmie, who sang back up for Gomez’s band the Scene, warmed up the audience Friday night with a few originals from her new album With Love available on iTunes now.
Also on the bill was Emblem 3, a boy band group signed by ex-American Idol judge Simon Cowell. After the trio placed fourth on Fox’s X-Factor, the trio proved that there is always a niche for boy bands in pop music as the tween audience shrilled with scream throughout their 30 minute set.
While most tweens and teens will walk away with their t-shirts, posters, and memories on their Instagram profiles, the gay in me cannot help but be a little disappointed in this pop princess’s stage show. Gomez lacked the wow factor that fellow pop queens Perry and Swift have implanted in their shows. Maybe it was the 90s choreography, or the lip syncing that would even make RuPaul cry, but Gomez should take a few lessons from how her fellow stars dance . . . and put on a show.