*Visions of Broadway look to be filling Usher’s mind as the “My Way” entertainer harbors thoughts of bringing his music to a theatrical stage. Sharing his views on the notion, Usher mentioned his interest in expanding his creativity beyond the realm of studio albums and music videos.
His inspiration? None other than his “My Boo” collaborator and friend Alicia Keys, who put theatergoers on notice in April with her semi-autobiographical play, “Hell’s Kitchen.” The production, which opened in New York’s Shubert Theater, proved to strike a successful nerve, combining some of the songstress’ real-life experiences and award-winning music for a worthwhile venture.
In all, “Hell’s Kitchen” collected 13 Tony nominations as well as Tony Awards for cast members Kecia Lewis and Maleah Joi Moon, who respectively received acknowledgment for their featured and lead roles in the musical.
“Judging from the success Alicia Keys has had and so many incredible other artists or other creatives [that] go from the entertainment world to now kind of merge over into the theatrical space, you know live, Broadway-type of performance. I’d love to do that,” Usher told USA Today Entertainment, Revolt reports.
“I’d love to take some of the creative license to reimagine certain musical moments in my life. I’ll never get a chance to fully explain each album in its entirety,” he added. “[With] the singles, [I] probably did a significant job, and if people got a chance to see me live, then they got a little bit more of those songs from that album, but with a play, you could story tell, take your time and help people understand what the motivation of ‘8701’ was, what the motivation of ‘Raymond v. Raymond’ was, what the motivation of ‘Looking For Myself’ was really about.”
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Should Usher go there, like Keys, he has a slew of material to pull from to create a quality theatrical endeavor while diving deeper into his musical catalog with new stories on an even more coveted stage.
Presently, Usher is spreading the hits and love via his “Past Present Future” world tour, The trek, which is in support of the 45-year-old vocalist’s latest album “Coming Home,” takes fans on a journey while paying homage to Usher’s discography, which fueled his rise to being the iconic singer he is today.
With 31 years in the entertainment industry to his credit, Usher has more than given his best in providing something for fans to move and grind to.
The eight-time Grammy Award-winner, who takes to the big screen this month for his concert film “Usher: Rendezvous in Paris,” shared that part of his motivation for venturing into new spaces is taking steps to expand his artistry past its former bounding limits.
Those new spaces include his nearly three Las Vegas residencies as well as his Super Bowl halftime show performance, which included a memorable cameo from Keys.
“I just want to break all the boundaries and just go back and reimagine some of the things because I didn’t get a chance to share it,” Usher said about finding new ways to bring his song stylings to the masses via television and film, among other ways.
“Being able to turn the corner after having success with those albums and go back and say, ‘Wait a minute, what if we do a TV show about that? What if we really allow people to go all the way into the storytelling and maybe really explain what ‘Confessions’ is really about? What the feeling and culture of ‘Confessions’ is?’ If I can really go into the mindset of what it is to be inspired by music from 2001 all the way back to 1987, then you’ll really understand what ‘8701’ is about.”
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