As Sunday night descended on Houston, fans of R&B music got a chance to celebrate live music. With Mother’s Day drawing to a close and the rainy weather letting up a little, people traveled out to Sugar Land and the Smart Financial Centre to watch Tank hit the stage.
Whether running through tracks from his latest album or taking it back to his 2001 debut, Durrell Artaze Babbs, known as Tank, had the crowd swaying to the beat as he channeled hit after hit. Standing center stage draped in a black suit accented by glimmering pinstripes that flashed under the spotlight, the Baltimore singer took it all in as he looked over the audience.
The tour is all Tank moving back and forth between soulful and sensual. Since his debut album, Force of Nature, Tank has been releasing music at a steady pace, never taking more than five years between albums. The result is a catalog of hits he took full advantage of as he graced the Smart Financial stage.
The R&B Money Tour not only highlighted Tank but also brought Keri Hilson and Carl Thomas to Sugar Land. The 26-city tour kicked off in New Orleans a few days ago with Tank announcing that his most recent musical offering would be his last.
In a 2022 interview with Billboard Magazine the “Maybe I Deserve” singer said he experienced extreme vertigo due to sudden sensorineural hearing loss in his ear. The news sent his fans reeling but the 45-year-old singer still announced his tenth studio album R&B Money. The album coincides with his tour and his wildly popular R&B Money podcast where Tank and J Valentine document the history, behind the scenes stories, and insights or producers, artists, songwriters, and executives in the R&B world.
Carl Thomas, dressed in all black and a bright white jacket, brought the crowd to their feet with “Summer Rain” and “I Wish”. Keri Hilson strutted through the audience belting out “Pretty Girl Rock” as the audience echoed back. The tour is not only a showcase of the talents of Tank, Hilson, and Thomas but also an opportunity to highlight new artists. The show also opened with Houstonians Jack Freeman and D Savannah.
For Tank, the opportunity to expose more people to the world of R&B is a part of the mission. That’s why when he announced a contest for the opportunity to open for the tour, he remained focused on the music.
“I think there are a lot of people next up,” the singer said a few days ago via a social media post. “We give back. We move the culture forward. I don’t care if you’ve got a song on the radio. I don’t care about streaming. All I care about is your R&B”
This might be Tank’s last tour or album, but it will not be the last time we see his influence on the music world.
This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2024.
