By Jae-Ha Kim
Chicago Sun-Times
August 18, 1999
Matthias Rocca was the luckiest teen in the world (or at least the Chicago area) Tuesday night when Britney Spears held his hand and sang Born to Make You Happy at her sold-out show at the Rosemont Theatre.
Not that he he didnt appreciate it. Rocca–a contest winner–flew in from Germany for the show and got his wish to meet Spears. It couldve been the lights reflecting off of Spears body glitter, but Im pretty sure that even after he returned to his seat in the audience, I saw love in his eyes.
Oh baby, baby.
The kids were out in full force for Spears first headlining tour, and Im not just talking about the little 10-year-old girls (though there were plenty of those, too). When Spears whipped off her shiny, white jacket to reveal a tight, pink tube top, the roar eminating from the audience was hormonal and very male.
Currently on her first headlining tour, the 17-year-old music video star with the washboard abs needed to do little more than show up to please her young fans. But she put on a thoroughly entertaining show. Backed by five talented dancers, Spears–herself no slouch in the dance department–ran through cuts from her quadruple platinum album “…Baby One More Time.” And when she moaned the familiar “Oh baby, baby” intro to her breakthrough single of the same name, she displayed a sexy, but playful quality that kept the song surprisingly clean.
With her girlish voice and sun-kissed looks, Spears is the female answer to the Backstreet Boys, which shouldnt come as too much of a surprise given that Max Martin has penned hits for both the Boys and Spears; and that Nigel Dick has directed videos for both. But while the Boys sing songs about that elusive girl that got away, Spears–like Brandy–does a good job at conveying what it feels like to be the girl whose heart was broken.
Spears is a good singer who included a medley of Madonna and Janet Jackson hits into her set. But she hasnt developed a style as distinctive as, say, Garbages Shirley Manson. But whats clear is that while she may sing bubblegum for now, Spears has enough charm and drive to make the flavor last longer than 15 minutes.
Michael Fredo stood out among the four opening acts. Tall, lean and impossibly cute, the 20-year-old former jazz singer debuted cuts from his upcoming fall album Introducing Michael Fredo. With his anthemic single “This Time Around,” Fredo proved he has the dynamics to translate well in a live setting.
