There was a moment just after midnight on Saturday when everyone in the National Park seemed to be in the air, shouting or singing.
Seemingly in ecstasy, they screamed as one, as confetti rained down from the stage. It was only to be expected as the man, the hundreds of persons had turned up see, had stepped upon the stage shouting his trademark phrases and immediately burst into song. Many had travelled long distances to see Brazilian sensation, Pepe Moreno perform live for the first time in Guyana. One of the most popular Brazilian artistes in Guyana, he did not disappoint.
The crowd at the National Park on Saturday night was maybe not as much as expected by the organizers but it was sufficiently large enough to fill a portion of the tarmac. As can be expected, there was a large Brazilian contingent but Guyanese turned out too as well as a number of foreigners.
A slew of popular dance songs dissolved when Banda Desejo took to the stage and immediately took control of the crowd. While many may not have understood exactly what they were singing about, it did not matter.
Music, after all is a universal language and the beats spoke clearly enough. With their catchy
tempo and variety of singers, in one way or the other, the band worked the crowd and whetted their appetite. There was the added attraction of scantily clad beauties gyrating on the stage, enough to make anyone want to move.
But where was Pepe? Apparently waiting for the midnight hour, he stepped onto the stage just after 12 pm. Persons rushed to take photos as he burst into his most popular hits.
It was wild. The artiste and his dancers took command of the crowd and in his two-hour performance, belted out hit after hit to the pleasure of the crowd, that included not only adults but children as well, all eager to show their moves whether they had the right ones or not. He also introduced to the audience a few of his newer songs.
Moreno, more popularly called just Pepe is to Brazilians and his fans what Akon is to his. A few years back there was a rumour that he was dead and persons, up to Saturday night, were questioning whether it was the “real Pepe”.
For those present at the National Park, that night, there was no doubt.
A fantastic performance by him and great dancing from his scantily clad dancers. But there was a glitch that marred the show. Even before the halfway point, the sound system was apparently unable to cope with what was otherwise a top-notch performance by Pepe. As a result, as the show progressed, the sound came out wooden and the energy that had been generated by the energetic beginning little by little dissipated.
Notwithstanding that, the chance to see one of their favourite artistes perform live on stage was enough for many. As Pepe sang about a girl and taking her to paradise, among other things, they moved their bodies under the hot August night, so taken up that some grabbed others- strangers and moved to the beats. When the show wrapped up shortly after 2am, it was to hear that the artiste would be returning later this year to shoot a video. Earlier, a few girls from the crowd had been selected to compete among themselves in dancing on the stage. Maybe next time, they could also do the little strip thingy too. Hey, it’s at the end of every show I’ve seen…ok, ok, I’m just saying.
