With her arms draped in fiery red wings, Brittany Howard stood prophetically before Hearst Greek Theatre, proclaiming in all her glory, “I promise to think before I speak, to be wary of who I give my energy to … we are brothers and sisters, each and every one … I am dedicated to oppose those who will divide us.”
Known for her soulful solo work and decade-long rock project Alabama Shakes, Howard has teamed up with British artist Michael Kiwanuka to deliver an equally soulful, earnest co-headlining tour. Capping off the North-American leg, the two artists landed at Berkeley’s Greek Theatre on Oct. 17th, bringing with them each an explosive nine-person band.
Howard’s proclamation, the opening lines to her song “13th Century Metal,” thundered over two powerful bass drums. The song is more rallying cry than succinct melody. Her words — they’re punchy. Now five years old, the lyrics continue to hold political resonance as time passes, taking on new fervor as the national election approaches. With Howard’s continuous emphasis on the need for unity, the crowd grew more and more enthusiastic. She sees her audience, and her audience sees her.
For longtime fans, this tour is a return to form after a prolonged touring hiatus that followed her 2019 album Jaime, a lyrical exploration of queerness, race and home. The latest, What Now, takes on a new character. Howard has brought funk to the forefront of her sound, stretching to the album cover where Howard lies in a technicolor field in a hypnotically patterned dress. She brought her cover to life at the Greek, as she danced in front of neon glowing mountains. Seeing her come alive before an audience, it’s clear that her music is made for performance.
As Howard’s performance closed in triumph, the Greek quieted. Fog rolled over the stage and past the campanile as audience members burned sage. Her captivating presence and resounding voice had made its mark on the audience, culminating in something skirting spiritual. Out of the fog Kiwanuka emerged, recentering the audience with “Hard to Say Goodbye” a hard hitting ballad from his critically acclaimed album Kiwanuka. His entrance marked a contemplative shift from the rock-and-roll energy Howard had brought to the stage.
As the upbeat swing of “You Ain’t the Problem” began, an eye flickered to life on the screen behind him. The film suggested Kiwanuka turning towards a past version of himself, magnifying his innocence through the young boy’s smooth skin and bright eyes. His voice was beyond rich here, exemplifying the song’s message of forgiveness toward a past self through tone and lyric. Supported by the strong echo of his background singers’, Kiwanuka chants the refrain “Don’t hesitate/ Time heals the pain.”
In “Black Man in a White World,” a Black man boxing the air projected behind Kiwanuka, who sang, “I’ve lost everything I’ve had/ I’m not angry, I’m not mad/ I’m a Black man in a white world.” In a 2016 interview, Kiwanuka revealed that this song was inspired by his experience performing in America, where he was shocked to realize that his audiences were almost entirely white. Standing in Berkeley’s Greek Theatre, it was hard not to notice that this dynamic hadn’t changed much since that interview. Like Howard’s track “13th Century Metal,” which gains new layers of meaning as time and audiences change, “Black Man in a White World” holds similar power, resonating as an ongoing reflection of his experience as a performer.
The synchronized films added to the power of his performance, but one of his most poignant performances was a stripped down solo rendition of “I’m Getting Ready,” a gentle, wistful song from his 2012 album Home Again. Kiwanuka had already shown the audience his ability to lead a dynamic band but seeing him perform alone was a testament to his individual musicality.
People excitedly rose to their feet as “Cold Little Heart,” began. Famous for accompanying shots of the sweeping Big Sur Coastline in “Big Little Lies,” the song’s layered harmonies soared in the amphitheater. Again Kiwanuka opened with a close visual, this time of a woman’s finger encircled in a giant wedding ring. As the song progressed the camera zoomed out to display a couple swaying over the words, “We can try to hide it/ It’s all the same/ I’ve been losing you one day at a time.” For a song staked on a relationship in turmoil, the shared love of the hit united the audience.
The whole crowd was anticipating a duet from the two headliners, but by the concert’s end, it became apparent that they were not planning to perform together. Their musical voices — both blending soul and rock together delicately — would have perfectly complemented each other. Although mildly disappointing, this realization was overshadowed by the pleasure of watching two talents in their natural element.
