\u201cIt\u2019s the world\u2019s biggest outdoor house party!\u201d Kid from \u201990s rap duo Kid \u2019n Play said when I caught the icons backstage at the Jazz in the Gardens Music Festival this past weekend. The two were part of the festival\u2019s \u201cI Love the \u201990s\u201d set, featuring Biz Markie, Salt-N-Pepa and Trick Daddy. Of course, since Miami is his city, Trick completely took over the stage, bringing out fellow Miami fave Trina to a roaring crowd.<\/p>\n
This show is one of the biggest and baddest displays of the best in jazz, hip-hop and R&B. From blasts from the past who still slay our present\u2014like Smokey Robinson and Chaka Khan\u2014to contemporary artists like Fantasia, Avery Sunshine and Joe, there\u2019s no shortage of perfect vocal entertainment. And the cherry on top? Miami Gardens was one of Anita Baker\u2019s stops on her farewell tour<\/a>.<\/p>\n After Baker performed, I found myself backstage, walking around getting interviews. At one point, the security guards asked everyone to make way because Baker\u2019s SUV was leaving the venue. The SUV drove through the lane we had made and stopped next to Biz Markie. The window rolled down and Baker poked her head out and said, \u201cBiz Markie! We go way back!\u201d She wanted a selfie with the hip-hop legend, and all the lookers-on swooned over Baker swooning over Biz Markie.<\/p>\n But before Baker\u2019s SUV slid out the back, she had bounced from hit to hit during her set, opening with \u201cSweet Love\u201d and gracefully bopping from \u201cBeen So Long\u201d and \u201cCaught Up in the Rapture\u201d to my personal favorite, \u201cNo One in the World.\u201d Between songs, Baker connected with the audience with humor, often telling us that she\u2019s too old for this, and of course we protested.<\/p>\n One of the audience members held up a picture of herself with Baker when she was a child and Baker strained to see the photo, wanting to see herself at age 30, because she knew she was \u201clooking fine!\u201d We all giggled at Baker\u2019s sense of humor as she chastised the cameraman for getting too close and thanked mystery hands that popped up onstage, attempting to fix mechanics behind the scenes.<\/p>\n Baker was endearing and sweet and executed a casual slay on the sultry Miami stage. I stopped fellow songbird and JITG performer Avery Sunshine as well as Kid \u2019n Play backstage and asked them about the queen.<\/p>\n After I broke it to Kid \u2019n Play that Baker was on her farewell tour, I asked them to share their favorite Anita Baker records and Play said, \u201c\u2018Angel.\u2019 I remember when I heard that record; I needed someone to love oh so desperately.\u201d<\/p>\n Kid shared that his favorite Baker record was \u201cGiving You the Best That I Got.\u201d He added, \u201cAnita Baker songs make you call your ex.\u201d<\/p>\n When I noted that she had sung both of those songs during her performance, they told me that they\u2019d missed it and thanked me for rubbing it in that I had been fortunate enough to see Baker\u2019s performance.<\/p>\n Sunshine told me that her favorite Baker song is \u201cSweet Love.\u201d In fact, Sunshine added \u201cSweet Love\u201d to the end of her performance of her single \u201cAll in My Head\u201d at the festival.<\/p>\n Sunshine said, smiling, \u201cSomeone must have sent it to her, and she tweeted me and said, \u2018Keep going, young one.\u2019 It means so much to even share the same stage with her. I\u2019ve studied her.\u201d Sunshine started reminiscing about Baker\u2019s signature fit-and-flare gowns and her hair that was \u201cbeat to high heaven\u2014she does her own hair and always has,\u201d beaming with pride over her fun fact.<\/p>\n Baker performed on the second night of the festival and shared the stage that night with Tasha Cobbs Leonard, Pieces of a Dream, Sunshine, Walter Beasley and Joe. The first night of the festival boasted Chaka Khan, Fantasia, Smokey Robinson and more, but it was Fanny who was the night\u2019s standout. She did her signature shoe kickoff and took the crowd to church. If Fantasia had called lost souls to come to the stage in an altar call, I bet no one would have hesitated. Fantasia\u2019s voice shifted souls. And a shifting was needed because it\u2019s been said that one part of that night was a bit rough. Many fans complained about Chaka Khan\u2019s performance; her reps said she was suffering from the flu<\/a>.<\/p>\n One conversation that\u2019s been floating around recently is the idea of appropriation versus appreciation when it comes to music, namely in relation to Bruno Mars. So I asked Kid \u2019n Play and Sunshine if, as black artists, they could chime in on the conversation. Sunshine said, \u201cAppropriation is politically correct.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAppropriation\u201d is the word that people use when they really mean stealing. It\u2019s the intent of appropriation that\u2019s problematic, but when you have someone who appreciates the culture and gives credit when and where it\u2019s due, it\u2019s accepted.<\/p>\n Play said, \u201cThe gentleman has definitely been influenced by music that we love. He\u2019s bringing back that feel-good experience, love, dancing, having a good time. What are you supposed to do with that when you plant them seeds? You supposed to let it die? Let it grow and take it to the next generation!\u201d<\/p>\n Sunshine added, \u201cIt is really important for us to keep doing it, keep making music, for us to be present. I hear our music, I close my eyes and then open my eyes, and they look nothing like us. I don\u2019t want to sound like I\u2019m not grateful, but it\u2019s real. There\u2019s folks who don\u2019t look like us saying the same things we say, but it doesn\u2019t feel the same. You can tell.\u201d<\/p>\n That\u2019s the importance of jazz and R&B. It takes a certain amount of soul to be able to pull off this music, and often what happens with appropriation, you see the attempt, but the execution fails when there\u2019s a lack of depth or soul. This is why you should go to Jazz in the Gardens. It\u2019s a festival that focuses on music that is for us and by us. So make sure you get a ticket next year!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n
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