Buy tickets to the “Hands Up!” concert in Vladivostok it was already difficult within a month – the best places were taken away as soon as the poster appeared. And so in our city, every visit of the favorite youth group from the 90s. On Saturday, the Fetisov Arena, which seats up to 7,000 people, was filled to capacity.
Spectators began to be allowed into the concert two hours before the start, and long lines immediately formed at the entrance. Before entering the dance floor, they sold souvenirs with the name and symbols of the group. Four young women sort through T-shirts. They look to be in their 30s, like most of the spectators. Just the generation that celebrated its coming of age at “I’m already 18.”
“We’ve been listening to “Hands Up!” since our youth. – the fans said with wide smiles. – And for the first time in our lives we are going to their concert! We came specially from Yakutia for the concert!”
By 7:00 p.m., the seating and dance floor were nearly full. On the dance floor – the closer to the stage, the tighter it is. No one canceled the theatrical 15 minutes, the musicians were delayed. From time to time, fountains of smoke were released along the edges of the stage and the audience responded to this with waves of screams. And then Sergei Zhukov came out to the sparkles of sparkles. He started with the song “1, 2, 3, 4, 5.”
The show has begun. Laser beams, light music, sparks, smoke, dancing “Street Jazz” on stage, singing and enthusiastic fans with posters on the dance floor and in the stands. Between verses the singer shouted to the audience “Where are the hands!” and “Hands up” and the dancing spectators raised their hands shouting.
“Today we will unite our entire show, everything that you will see and hear, in one word – memories. Today we will remember. And believe me, the memories will be the purest, the brightest, the brightest, because today we will remember everything from your childhood, youth, school years, and student days! Guys, all this will fly before your eyes today, so seize these moments, bathe in these emotions, remember the good, the kind, the eternal today!” – Sergey Zhukov greeted Vladivostok.
He sang a medley of “Little Girls,” “Ay-Yay-Yay,” and “Where Are You, Girls.” The soloist joked with the audience, pointing the microphone at the audience, who sometimes sang louder than him. After the songs, Sergei said something kind, joked, suggested remembering the past, and played with the audience. He noted the audience who, when a concert is announced, immediately buy tickets to the dance floor to dance and thereby support the artists. He admired the spectators in the stands who had the stamina to sit during the concert, and encouraged them all to get up and dance even there. To the first sounds of the hit “My Baby,” the stands jumped up from their seats and began to dance.
“These are crumbs! – Zhukov said after the song. – How my babies have grown. Standing, bearded. Girls, you will forever remain babies for me!”
Each song performed by Sergei Zhukov was accompanied by special special effects. The graphics and colors on the screen changed. For some songs, it displayed words, like in karaoke, or flickering graffiti. Under others, streamers flew into the hall or fountains of sparks erupted. The feeling of something new was also created by the dancers, who changed their costumes for each composition: silver, with stripes, like the Adidas or basketball jerseys popular in the 90s.
The audience also participated in creating the beauty and atmosphere: while listening to romantic songs, they took out their phones and turned on their flashlights. When the hall was brought onto the screen during the song “Only Dreaming of You,” it resembled a night field with glowing fireflies. And, of course, they sang along all the time.
“Why do you need artists, you sing better! But you know, five percent of the people in the audience still sing the words of the song “He Kisses You” incorrectly. Just listen, some people sing “photos… on an iPhone”! Can you imagine! – Zhukov said after the song “He kisses you.”
The group’s concert was long, although it flew by unnoticed. In the middle of “Hands Up!” gave a surprise to the audience and invited another very popular artist from the nineties-zero era to the stage – DJ GROOVE. The familiar mixes “At Dawn”, How much is the fish from Scooter, Satisfaction from Benny Bennasi, and “Happiness is” sounded.
During one of the breaks, Zhukov called himself the happiest singer in Russia, because families and generations come to his concerts. He asked those between 0 and 20 years old to raise their hands and make noise, and the camera showed several dozen people on the screen with their hands raised. More raised hands appeared when Sergei named the range from 20 to 30 years. And for those aged 30 to 40, the hall was filled with noise, and from the image on the screen it seemed that everyone had raised their hands. There were also many people over 40.
“This is the first time that girls are happy that they are forty!” – Sergei Zhukov joked.
The final songs were the ones that the group released first. “Student” was first sung in 1995, 29 years ago. At this concert she became the penultimate, but broke off in the middle. The soloist finished the verse with the audience and offered to break away to the hit song “I’m already 18.” White balls rained down from under the ceiling. But as soon as they flew across the hall, this song stopped: the equipment failed. Then a trailer for the film “Hands Up” appeared on the screen, which was filmed based on real events, but the audience was already in a hurry to leave, because they know from experience that there is a long road ahead through traffic jams. After getting into their cars, some turned on the half-sung “I’m 18” at full volume and sang at the top of their voices.
