After rapper Mickey Avalon had his
opening slot with Sublime with Rome at Meadow Brook Music Festival, he stayed in
the area to do a couple headlining dates. Motorcityblog was there to catch them
and report back.
Mickey kicked off his second Michigan date on his 2015 Summer tour on
Sunday, July 26 at The Pyramid Scheme in Grand Rapids, MI. First time at this
venue and I was very impressed. You can't go wrong with beer and 50 pinball machines in a
venue.
Mickey played to a packed house at The Pyramid Scheme, which was very impressive for a Sunday night. Mickey had a much more stage time than his opening slot the day before. He easily filled his 70 minute set with material off his two full length albums, singles, and some new material not yet released. Songs included Romeo and Juliet, Mickey's Girl, Friends and Lovers, and Fuckin' Em All. The crowd keep their bodies close to the stage and the energy level was high for the entire show. A eager fan jumped on stage during the danceable favorite Jane Fonda to show off her moves and Mickey played along. By the end of the song, dozens of ladies from the audience were on stage and stayed for both Stroke Me and My Dick that followed.
Check out this live footage from The Pyramid Scheme show...
Next up for Mickey was a gig on Monday, July 27 at Frankie's Inner City in Toledo, OH. It was a hot Monday and even hotter inside the bar with no air conditioning running. Mickey was covered in sweat by the end of his first song of the set, but it didn't stop him from giving his all during it. Frankie's Inner City is a small and narrow venue, but the packed crowd was very polite and had a blast singing along and dancing. During Mickey's song On The Ave. a shower of dollar bills started getting thrown on stage for Mickey. Mickey's roadie Tuna took a stab at playing live guitar during Jane Fonda at the previous night's gig and at this gig he played guitar on not only that track, but also Rock Bottom and Stroke Me. It was a nice addition that got me thinking that Mickey with a entire live band would be amazing. Mickey may be a rapper, but his backing music is very rock infused.
The ladies of the crowd could not resist the stage once again during Jane Fonda. Booty shaking and even underwear waving commenced during the song before the ladies were told by the staff to vacate the stage. Disappointment of not being able to shake it any longer on stage would soon pass as Mickey invited all the ladies on stage two songs later for the song My Dick. A crowd pleaser if there ever was one, the ladies flooded the stage to dance, snap cellphone pics/video, and sing along.
Check out this live footage from the Frankie's Inner City show...
One thing is certain when it comes to a Mickey Avalon show. The crowd will be lively and have no inhibitions. Due to this, his live shows always make for a fun atmosphere
Mickey comes out after his shows to meet fans, sign autographs, and take
pictures. He greeted dozens of fans each night. Smiles and hugs were a common
sight at the meet and greets and everyone left happy.
MCB also put together this compilation video featuring live footage and hijinx from from the two shows....
Photos by: Casey Schwochow and Danielle Arsenault
Video by: Ambervillain Films