Ke$ha Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion August 2, 2011
See glitter, glow-in-the-dark attire and some mighty afros from Ke$ha, LMFAO and Spank Rock (and their fans) in our slideshow.
Halfway through her sparkly, sordid and sweaty extravaganza Tuesday night, Ke$ha dropped to the floor of the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavillion stage and, while hunched forward, began to perform "The Harold Song," in which she longs for companionship and says she would gladly give up all of her fame, fortune and even glitter (we assume) if only she had someone with whom to share her bed.
Not in the sexual way, believe it or not; in the romantic, I-don't-want-to-sleep-alone way.
As the song ended and the crowd cheered, she softly breathed a thank-you into the microphone, telling the crowd, "I love you guys."
It was nothing like the Ke$ha we've read about, and it was a stark contrast to the Ke$ha we had been watching up until that very moment.
She may be a puppet in an industry only concerned with making a quick buck, but there may be substance behind this diva. And if she can write more songs like "Harold" on her forthcoming albums, she may even be able to appeal to a few less-than-sleazy young women. In the meantime, she'll stick to what works.
"Harold" was, of course, an anomaly in an evening full of glitter, glam, boobs, balls and, believe it or not, a few appearances by Santa Claus. If that wasn't enough, Ke$ha played guitar a few times.
Appropriately, the show began with the warped feminist anthem "Sleazy," as the lady of the evening stood in the middle of the stage, sporting sunglasses with bright LCD lights on them.
"This song is about taking your clothes off," Ke$ha told the crowd as the backbeat for "Take It Off" began. Fittingly, the male dancers onstage began stripping, eventually making their way to the edge of the stage with old-timey cameras, pretending to be paparazzi, snapping photos of the crowd.
After "Blow," a man sloppily dressed as Santa Claus walked out onstage, didn't say or do anything, then walked offstage while Ke$ha switched outfits. After changing into more patriotic garb (a red, white and blue tank top), the slutwave queen reappeared and addressed the crowd again.
"Houston, when I say 'Blah,' you say, 'Blah,'" she said, holding a guitar shaped like an AK-47. If there's one thing Aftermath is good at, it's following simple directions. We complied.
Anyone who thinks Ke$ha's lyrics don't have authenticity to them can write off their suspicions as untrue. "Backstabber" is apparently about grand theft auto. Yup, Ke$ha said so herself.
