New shows: Lil Wayne, Bloc Party, Akon, Stevie Wonder
November 18th, 2008, 12:33 pm · Post a Comment · posted by Ben Wener
It’s almost like a second Cali Christmas, and it’s even at the same location: Lil Wayne, arguably the hottest hip-hop star of the year, has announced a Dec. 21 show at Gibson Amphitheatre, with several popular opening acts: fellow rapper T-Pain, urban-soul singers Keyshia Cole and Keri Hilson, and the hip-hop/rock band Gym Class Heroes. Tickets, $50.75-$95.75, go on sale at 1 p.m. Friday, Nov. 21.
Bloc Party, the British band that just issued its third album (Intimacy), will return to the Grove of Anaheim on Dec. 15, just a few nights after they appear Dec. 10 at Club Nokia alongside Pretenders, Black Kids and more, as part of Indie 103.1’s Wreck the Halls. Tickets for the Grove gig, $20, go on sale at noon Saturday, Nov. 22. Also going on sale: the group’s Dec. 13 show at the House of Blues in San Diego, $22.50.
Speaking of Club Nokia, the newly opened hotspot naturally keeps adding more talent to its roster. Akon will appear there Dec. 30, with tickets ($39.50-$65) going on sale at 10 a.m. Friday, Nov. 21. Also on the way: America, Dec. 4, $20-$45, on sale Friday at 10 a.m. … Boyz II Men, Jan. 16, $39.50-$59.50, on sale at 10 a.m. Saturday … and fractured Adult Swim attraction Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Jan. 17, $25-$35, also on sale at 10 a.m. Saturday.
Meanwhile, the other concert hall in the L.A. Live complex, Nokia Theatre, has added a number of shows. We already mentioned that the LaBelle reunion arrives on Jan. 29, but Stevie Wonder returns ahead of that for a Dec. 13 performance that presumably will be his annual House Full of Toys bash. Tickets, $75-$115, are on sale now. Also coming to Nokia: Freestyle Explosion featuring Debbie Deb, Lisa Lisa, Shannon with Expose, the Cover Girls and more, Jan. 24, $39.50-$49.50, on sale Friday at 10 a.m. … and Conjunto Primavera, March 7, $25-$125, on sale Saturday at 10 a.m.
Acclaimed Chicago singer-songwriter Andrew Bird is on his way back to L.A. for a Feb. 18 stop at the Orpheum. Lonely Dear opens. Tickets, $33-$35, go on sale Saturday at 10 a.m.
New at House of Blues Anaheim: Chrisette Michelle, Dec. 28, $26.50-$57.50 … Pato Banton with the Mystic Roots Band, Jan. 3, $17.50-$37.50 … and Marc Broussard with Jessie Baylin and Josh Hoge, Jan. 15, $17.50-$32.50. All shows go on sale Saturday.
At the Music Box at the Fonda in Hollywood: the Walkmen with Beach House, Jan. 20, $18, on sale Saturday at 10 a.m. … and Kinky, Feb. 24, $20, on sale now.
At El Rey Theatre: Chris Pierce, Jan. 23, $18, on sale Saturday … Tyrone Wells, Jan. 30, $17, on sale now … and Dan Auerbach, taking a break from the Black Keys, March 14, not long after he drops his solo debut (Keep It Hid, due Feb. 10), with Hacienda and Those Darlins opening, $22, on sale Saturday.
And at the Glass House in Pomona: A Static Lullaby with Run Doris Run, Dec. 14, $13 … Orange County punk veterans T.S.O.L. with Black President and Chaser, Jan. 23, $12 … and critics’ fave Lykki Li, Feb. 17, $17.50. All of those shows are on sale now.
