Roberto Carlos moved the audience on Mother’s Day at Radio City Music Hall by remembering his mother 12 years after learning of her death, precisely, in this New York venue.
“I always sang this song with great joy. Today I sing it without any joy, but with great love for my mother”, expressed the Brazilian idol on Sunday night when he dedicated “Lady Laura”, the 1978 song that he composed for his mother, Laura Moreira, to the mothers present. Braga. “Happy Mother’s Day to all.”
From the moment he appeared on stage to perform “Qué sera de ti”, until he handed out dozens of red and white roses as usual before closing with his classic “A million friends”, Roberto Carlos captivated a packed Radio City, which chanted each song, he laughed with his jokes and gave him cheers and loud applause.
Dressed in a sky blue two-piece suit with a white shirt, the 81-year-old performer looked jovial and in good spirits as he sang, with his sweet voice intact, hits like “Cama y mesa,” “Desahogo,” and “Mulherpetita.” He only sat down to perform a ballad, “Details,” and held the attention of nearly 6,000 people speaking and singing in Spanish and Portuguese throughout the evening.
Roberto Carlos will perform at the Kia Forum as part of his 12-city US tour.
(CAIO GIRARD/AIR Enter.)
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One fan who couldn’t hold back her tears was Sandra Uribe, a Colombian sitting in the front rows who sang at the top of her lungs almost every song and at one point shouted: “The best gift from mothers in years!”
“For me it is a great joy. It’s my daughters’ Mother’s Day gift and it’s the fifth time I’ve seen it, but I haven’t had it this close,” she told The Associated Press after receiving one of the artist’s roses. “As long as he lives and I live, I will see him. I adore him,” she added wiping her cheek.
“Marvelous. The best gift I have received in life”, agreed Elisabete Rivas, originally from Brazil and who attended the concert with her daughter-in-law.
With a band of 13 musicians, including the conductor, keyboardist, bass, guitars, brass and backing vocalists, the show began with an overture of “A million friends” and “Jesús Cristo”, two of Roberto’s biggest hits. Carlos.
In one of the funniest moments, the singer-songwriter said that, after having written many love songs, he wondered if he needed something to say and, after thinking about it a lot, came to the conclusion that he needed to talk about sex.
“Once I was asked what were the three things I like to do the most. The first is sex with love, the second is sex, and the third is a good strawberry ice cream, in this order, “she continued with a laugh, and immediately interpreted” I propose to you “.
He also recalled his participation in the Sanremo Song Festival, which he won in 1968 with “Canzone per te” and to which he returned years later with “Un gatto nel blu”. The song, “a very favorite that did not win… it gave me a lot of joy because I had a great success in all Spanish-speaking countries” with its version in Spanish, “El gato que está triste y azul”, he said before interpreting it .
Among other songs, he sang “Friend”, “The distance” and “That guy is me”. And, in a sublime moment that she described as “a very big daring”, she interpreted “The day you love me” by Carlos Gardel “without any pretense”, she said. I have loved this song since I was a child.
The last time Roberto Carlos had sung at Radio City Music Hall was in 2019.
On Monday, his manager, Dody Sirena, told the AP that the singer was nervous before his performance on Sunday not only because he considers the venue a “musical temple”, but because it is the place where he learned of the death of his parent in 2010 and for being, precisely, Mother’s Day.
The standing ovation he received at the end shows that he soon felt very comfortable on stage.
Roberto Carlos continues his tour this week in Texas, with shows in McAllen, Dallas and Houston on May 12, 14 and 15, respectively, as well as El Paso on May 18. On May 21 he will perform at The Forum in Los Angeles before return to Brazil and continue to Mexico.
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