Rotimi Gave Nothing Short of His All In Baltimore
An attempt to mount your very first tour is something that can either frighten an artist, or amp them up to the point of having the momentum of a speeding bullet, and the latter appeared to be the case for Mr. Buttascotch himself, R&B heartthrob Rotimi. Although he’s been on the scene and releasing music for quite a while, his extremely busy schedule kept him from being able to reach out and touch his fans via touring, until now.
This past Thursday, April 21 was the first time that the artist presented his talents in a full-fledged showcase, when he brought his “All or Nothing” Tour to the Baltimore Soundstage. The show couldn’t come any sooner, as the previously set round of dates slated for the beginning of 2022 were temporarily postponed, and his fans we REA-DY!
Being that the music Rotimi produces typically has more of a “world” feel to it, there’s no surprise that he would be accompanied by someone who fit that same vibe. Adding HoodCelebrityy was the perfect choice to help round the complete show out. This Jamaican born dancehall princess came out of the gate with much ferociousness, literally running and jumping right into the audience’s faces. Looking like new money in her green latex outfit, she along with her two talented female dancers, ticked and whined all around the stage showing that she was a force to be reckoned with. Once she broke out into her hit “Walking Trophy“, we were all locked in. While watching HoodCelebrityy, I couldn’t help but to think that she could be the second coming of another dancehall queen, Lady Patra.
The resident tour DJ, DJ Reese kept the flow of the show going seamlessly as the stage was starting to take shape for the headliner. Rotimi appeared out of nowhere to center stage, in a red and white silk shirt and jeans, as he opened up his set with his hit “Love Riddim“. For the next hour, he would take all of those in attendance on a musical journal that felt as if we were spanning the entire globe.
That journey was comprised of songs that included tracks from his back catalog, including “Decisions“, “I Can’t Blame You” and “Legend“, but although all of those songs brought him TO this moment, he is touring to support his latest album “All or Nothing“, so what would be a proper album tour without debuting some of those newer cuts? “What To Do”, “Don’t You Ever”, “Decide,” and “Love Somebody” all sounded great with a band being the driving force behind them, giving each one the proper “live treatment” that it deserved.
As the crowd was majority filled with women, Ro easily played into his sex symbol role and drew them right in, especially during the performance of his new single “Weapon“, before hopping off the stage so that he could reach out and personally touch those women, or let them touch up on him! One female attendee behind me claimed that she had been waiting her whole day to spend this evening with Rotimi, and apologized in advance for screaming my ear off.
Of course the show wouldn’t be complete without him going into his biggest hit to date, “In My Bed“, while ripping his wife beater off and suggesting that there’s a meeting in his bedroom, which I’m sure is a meeting most would have been early for. By the end of the night, it was clear to us that Rotimi’s time has fully arrived, and granted this project is entitled “All or Nothing“, this young brother absolutely gave it his all in Baltimore.
