Jessie J Takes Over Black Sea Arena

From Elton John to Christina Aguillera, Check in Georgia has brought a lot of stars to the stage of the Black Sea Arena in the past three years since it opened. The venue opened the 2019 season with a successful Black Eyed Peas’ concert on June 16 this year, meaning on August 6, Jessie J had a lot of pressure to keep up the audience’s expectations. However, with her astounding voice, fantastic band, and high level of organizational management from the staff of the Black Sea Arena, Jessie J’s show gave a new meaning to the combination of words ‘tremendous success’.

The gates opened at around 18:00, but devoted fans of the British Pop star had been gathering around the Black Sea Arena hours prior, some had even spent the night there to grab the chance to see their favorite performer up close from the Golden Ring. When the doors opened, they poured into the Ring, many of them humming Jessie J’s hits, from ‘Queen’ to ‘Domino.’

Jessie J appeared on the main stage a little later than scheduled, opening the show with a 2015 single ‘Masterpiece’, meriting endless rounds of applause from the cheering audience. After a couple of songs, the performer saluted the audience and explained her choice of outfit and hairstyle – so different to her look at her Amsterdam show just a few days before the one in Shekvetili.

“I decided to dress up as myself from 2010, because that’s where it all started, and I’ve never been to Georgia. So to make up for it, I decided to take you all nine years back and sing the songs that I think you might want to hear,” said the British singer-songwriter over loud screams from the audience.

Jessie J did not forget to mention her gratitude for the sold-out show, admitting that the love she gets from people never ceases to amaze her and that fame has never becomes normal for her. The pop star united the audience, engaging them all with her hilarious self-depreciating humor. The latter combined with her own words: “You came to see me, I came to see you.” She asked the audience not to record her performance of ‘Domino,’ just so she could see everyone’s faces and the blissful moment could be caught and enjoyed by all – making the public feel that Jessie J, the incredibly talented famous pop star, was just a regular person, equal to them. This integrity shone from the star’s personality throughout the two-hour show in many ways – adding a song to her playlist at the fans’ request, conversing with the audience and taking videos with their phones, reading a fan’s letter on stage, warming up the listeners by having them sing along to an improvised ‘Jessie J and Georgia’ bit – all these and much more made the Shekvetili show unique for Georgian and foreign music lovers.

The winner of the 2011 BRIT Awards expressed her desire to come back to Georgia and as her Instagram post post-concert reads: “…THE ENERGY WAS MAD!!! My 1st show in Georgia and it was SOLD OUT! YOU WERE SO LOUD AND FULL OF LOVE. Thank you, thank you…”. The singer also posted a photo on her page that shows her having a blast on Shekvetili beach.

When asked about Jessie J’s thoughts and satisfaction with the concert, Executive Director of Black Sea Arena, Tato Kharchilava, told the press: “I haven’t talked to her yet, but I don’t think we need any further confirmation – seeing her face and emotions on the stage spoke well of her satisfaction and happiness about today’s show.”

An excited fan, 20-year-old Katerina, shared her impressions with GEORGIA TODAY: “I’ve been to quite a few shows, but this one is particularly memorable for me. Because I’m such a huge fan. She’s such a modest person and an amazing performer – delivering 100% in every show. I can’t describe the feeling with words: it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.”

While the Black Sea Arena cleaned up after the show and started preparation for Thirty Seconds to Mars’ arrival on August 13, the music lovers left slowly, some of them admitting that they hadn’t known much about Jessie J before this concert but were completely in love with her from there on in.

By Nini Dakhundaridze

Photo Copyright: Alex Ruadze