CROSSING LEON BRIDGES
Texas musician’s RodeoHouston debut comes with controversy, opportunity.
Leon Bridges knows there’s a lot riding on his RodeoHouston performance Friday evening.
The Fort Worth performer’s inclusion in the 2018 lineup, as this year’s Black Heritage Day performer, raised eyebrows and ire across social media. The complaint was that Bridges, whose music is steeped in ’50s and ’60s soul, appeals to a largely white audience.
“Who?” was also a frequently circulated question as Bridges is a relatively fresh face. He has released just one album, 2016’s “Coming Home,” and never charted a song on the Billboard Hot 100.
The rodeo’s Black Heritage Day normally is reserved for acts who appeal to a larger and older black audience — Alicia Keys, John Legend, Mary J. Blige.
Despite, or because of, the controversy surrounding this spot in the lineup, Bridges calls
it “a huge freaking opportunity for me.”
“It’s all relative. They’ve probably never heard of me. I’m new, but I’ve had the opportunity to be on ‘SNL,’ attend Obama’s last birthday party at The White House. But they’ve probably never heard of that. It’s fine,” Bridges says.
To reinforce his point, last month, Bridges’ song “Coming Home” popped up on “Forever Mine,” former first lady Michelle Obama’s Valentine’s Day playlist dedicated to former President Barack Obama.
Whether it’s up to audiences to expand their tastes or RodeoHouston to cater to crowds is an ongoing debate. Jason Derulo incited similar criticisms when he was revealed as the 2016 Black Heritage Day performer. But Derulo is a much bigger star, with several pop hits and a huge social media presence. That show drew 59,236 paid attendance, which is well under a sellout.
“I feel like I do need to prove myself for this one and definitely being conscious of that, I’m gonna give it 1,000 percent,” Bridges says.
If RodeoHouston is trying to attract a younger black audience, it could have looked to the likes of Solange, SZA, Khalid and K. Michelle — all young acts with building buzz in the mainstream music stream. And if they were trying to mix things up, there are several legacy acts who have never played RodeoHouston and would have drawn solid numbers, including Erykah Badu, Toni Braxton and En Vogue, who was a big hit at December’s Day for Night festival.
Though Bridges is used to performing for big festival crowds, RodeoHouston is a different animal.
“I’ve been performing now in front of tons of people for about three years. But this will definitely be the biggest one,” he says. “For me, I just make sure I do my songs well. And I’m playing some new songs for this one. ”
Bridges has earned comparisons to Sam Cooke and Otis Redding. That throwback sound earned “Coming Home” a Grammy nomination for best R&B album. But he’s currently working on new material — which he calls “more of a modern R&B album.”
“I wanted to make something that you can make love to and you can also dance to. The music that shaped me growing up was Ginuwine, Usher, even chopped and screwed. Mostly Z-Ro,” Bridges says of the Houston hip-hop style and one of its stars. “I was working at Rosa’s Cafe at the time, a Tex-Mex restaurant, in Oklahoma. I just have memories of listening to Z-Ro on the way to work. He’s definitely my favorite out of that whole scene. I feel like that’s shaped the way I write because I always like to make everything down tempo and half time. It’s always been a part of me.”
A Texas boy who loves classic Houston rap? Maybe this isn’t so crazy after all. And Bridges, for his part, seems primed for the challenge.
“Honestly, it was disappointing, just knowing that I’m a Texan (to hear the criticism). But I’m really unapologetic about it,” Bridges says.a.
“I look at it as an opportunity to gain new fans. My thing is if you like my music, you like it. And if you don’t, awesome.”