Anthony Hamilton - Carling Academy Birmingham - 20 August 2006 It could be the silky tones with the rugged edge or the soulful sexy beats with the moody feel. It could be the love, the passion or the sheer energy. Whatever it is, the magic that is Anthony Hamilton filled the Academy as he performed to hundreds of fans. Opening the show with his classic hit, ‘Coming From Where I’m From’ Hamilton got the crowd rocking from the get go and kept them partying right through to his latest hit, ‘Everybody Needs Some Love in Their Life’. It is this message that he came to share and everyone in the house felt the vibe. Magnetism The sheer energy and magnetism of Hamilton was incredible as he gave us all our favourite tunes, with a level of passion that I have not witnessed from any artist in a while. Totally at peace with himself, Hamilton took the fun to the highest level and transferred that energy all around the room. As well as dancing and mixing a cappella with beats, he doubled up as bit of a stand up comedian, laughing and joking about. Warning the crowd that "God’s gonna get them" whenever they don’t behave correctly and to be careful of untrustworthy friends, he shared a great sense of humour and positive energy. Powerful and sultry Talking about certain life situations that we can all relate to, he gave us a frank and personal account of some of the inspiration behind his creativity.Ìý Followed by the powerful beats and his sultry voice, this man had the crowd mesmerised. It’s always a pleasure to enjoy an artist having so much fun on stage and just to make sure the crowd felt entertained and involved, Hamilton climbed off the stage at regular intervals and partied right on in the heart of the crowd. He even allowed for us to have our moment, as he held out the microphone for a sing along and you know we all loved that as Hamilton is an artist who has the pure genius of creating the kind of songs that you can actually croon along to with genuine deep down heartfelt emotion. Magic Performing all the classics as well as less familiar tracks, complimented by the exceptionally talented band and outstanding backing singers, Hamilton was awesome from start to finish. His power is tremendous and it is clear why he has earned himself legions of fans. What really summed up this concert for me was that on the way out, a stranger said hello and when giving him that "Do I know you?" look, he said "I don’t know you, but I have to say hello because I just feel blessed after that concert." This is the magic of Anthony Hamilton. | 
