Somo at Brighton Music Hall
This past weekend I went to see Somo at Brighton Music Hall in Boston. Don’t worry I get the same reaction every time I say I went to see Somo. Most of the time people look at me funny and ask what Somo stands for and what kind of band they are.
Joseph Somo is actually an RnB artist from Dallas, Texas who goes by the stage name of Somo. He got started in the YouTube community with his amazing and simplistic covers of popular Top 40 songs. I guarantee if there is a song on the radio today that you hate you will be a fan of his version. Somo has a particularly smooth and gentle style that makes almost every song have a slow jams feel, even “Young and Beautiful,” by Lana Del Ray.
My friends and I attended the show with the expectation of being far away and not getting to meet him (the meet and greet tickets were way too expensive). Time was definitely on our side, because as soon as we got there the left wing of the stage was open and we wound up standing with our arms resting on the stage.
Yonas, a rapper who has recently taken the hip-hop scene by storm, opened for Somo with an amazingly powerful set that really brought the crowd together. Yonas is a rapper who merges the classic styles of Tupac and Nas with a modern-day message promoting peace, equality and freedom. Right before his set was over he asked the fans to tweet him when he went backstage, so naturally I tweeted that he should come back out and meet his newest fans. Not even two seconds later Yonas was back in the audience searching for my friends and I. When we walked over to him he said, “I couldn’t let my fans down.”
It was so refreshing to see an artist, who was rapidly gaining popularity, take the time to associate with his fan base and be so personable.
Yonas will be playing at Toad’s place in November with Mamosa, so if you are a true hip-hop fan I’d be on the lookout for that show.
Somo came out on stage about ten minutes after Yonas, which was nice because there was no real lag time between sets. He started out with his most popular original song “Kings & Queens.” This song combines his true RnB roots with hints of today’s Pop. The rest of his set mixed some of his oldest covers with songs off of his current album, My Life.
He ended his performance with my all time favorite song “Ride,” which is definitely rated R, and when he walked off stage my friends and I followed. This was probably the most daring thing we have ever done and thank goodness he is such a sweet guy who actually found it amusing and said to meet us by his tour bust after his meet and greet with everyone else.
Actually getting the time to sit and talk with Somo, take pictures and let him know what an inspiration he has been for me musically was amazing. He was such a sweet guy who really had a passion for his music and exemplified that in every way possible. If you have not heard of Somo before I suggest you give him a listen. He has hundreds of videos on YouTube for you to choose from and I guarantee he has covered a song that you either love, or hate, and made it ten times better.
