R&B Fridays Turned Up The Heat With Usher, Lil Jon & More 🔥

Australia's biggest R&B party hit up Brisbane last Friday and it was one for the books. The chilled R&B vibe mixed with the excitement of a Friday night out when the working week is done meant this party was pretty lit. 

With most of Brisbane's youth out for the ride, R&B fans were treated to sets from Next, Estelle (who played her iconic tune 'American Boy'), Naughty By Nature and more. Ginuwine got it going with his track 'Pony', and Taio Cruz reminded us all why we loved him so much in high school by starting his set with the banger that is 'Hangover'. Eve, Trey Songz and Salt & Pepa rounded out the acts before Usher & Lil Jon took to the stage for their combined set that was worth the wait. 

Bringing an extended set that went for almost two hours, R&B Fridays was basically a concert just for them; the set was extended due to T-Pain pulling out last minute. 

'Confessions Part 2' and 'Caught Up' were crowd favourites, with Usher's set intertwining with Lil Jon's tracks working well to break up the more chilled R&B with some upbeat tracks. Lil Jon was repping a City Edition Nike Jersey he had picked up from Pacific Fair Culture Kings the day before. 

Usher reminded us that he just is as dramatic as ever, with at least 5 costume changes during the set and a moment when he pulled his chain from a briefcase brought on stage, sheerly for the extra-ness of him putting it on with a screaming crowd accompanying him. 

One of the most memorable songs was a rendition of 'DJ Got Us Falling In Love' which was performed to the music of 'Billie Jean' by MJ. They also took the beat out of 'OMG' for a more relaxed version of the track. Usher sang live and danced to every song, proving to the crowd that even after all these years he hasn't lost it. 

Taking off items of clothing during each song, I have never seen a crowd of girls more disappointed than when he took off his singlet to reveal... another singlet. It got better though, he ended up taking off his shirt and doing some X-rated dance moves to the delight of the girls and the awkwardness of every guy in the crowd. In case you were wondering, he is as ripped as he was back in the day. 

Lil Jon's tunes 'Get Low', 'Shots' and 'Turn Down For What' went off, but none so more than the duo's joint hit 'Yeah!' which took everyone back to 2002 and told us it's okay to cheat, as long as it's with Usher. 

For the encore, we were treated to a shirtless Usher crooning to 'Let It Burn' and, after a brief emotional breakdown, he sang 'Without You' where the crowd lit up their phones. 

All in all, R&B Fridays was a lit night, even if it meant that Brunswick St was a shitshow full of people till the early hours of Saturday morning.