Live Review: R&B Band, Boyz II Men return to Birmingham after four years for a sold-out gig

After a four-year hiatus, the legendary R&B group Boyz II Men returned to the stage at the Birmingham O2 Academy on 24 April 2024.

Boyz II Men is aware of the fact that R&B genre are no longer a staple in the charts. Yet, they brought their old-school sound to a new-age crowd, despite having last topped the charts in 1997.

Returning to Birmingham, four years later, tenor vocalist Shawn Stockman expressed his gratitude to the older generations for introducing their music to the new generation at their show. The band made it clear that they have missed Birmingham and promised a sooner return.

Now, the question on everyone’s lips was, “Was the four-year wait worth it?” 

The Warm-Up Act

The evening began with DJ Silk and Frisky DJ, who got the crowd pumping with popular old school R&B and pop hits. Being on the floor standing, they really got the crowd ready for the performance. 

The show started with the British boy band Damage, currently consisting of Jade Jones, Rahsaan J Bromfield, Andrez Harriott, and Noel Simpson. Their amazing voices and dance moves kept the crowd entertained. They played a few of their hits including “Love II Love”.

The crowd was diverse, with people of many ages enjoying the music, including myself, who became introduce to the band, that very night.

The Main Act: Boyz II Men

The stage was then graced with the return of Boyz II Men, widely regarded as the greatest R&B vocal group ever. The group, now a trio comprised of members Nathan Morris, Wanya Morris, and Shawn Stockmen, kicked off the show with a musical teaser of “Believe Us” from their 2014 album ‘Collide’, offering the audience a taste of their fresh sound and their classic hits.

Dressed in suave all-white attire, they ran onto the stage as the lights dimmed, and the crowd went wild. They greeted us all and introduced themselves, starting their show like a film, with a flashing Boyz II Men logo and a fiery video, signalling that the band is ready to set the stage ablaze.

The Philadelphian singers took to the stage like it was 1994, with beautiful harmonies, gyrating hips, and matching dance moves. 

Boyz II Men provided ‘The Soundtrack to Life’ for so many of us, and it was evident in how the entire crowd sang along to each and every song they performed. In some cases, the band just let the crowd sing because they were quite impressed and honoured that we knew the words so well.

They performed many of their greatest hits but also changed things up by doing a performance of Bruno Mars’ “Locked Out of Heaven”, and the Beatles’ “Come Together”. An awesome thing about their performance was that Nathan and Sean were on bass and lead guitar. It was wonderful to watch them actually playing with their band.

The Verdict

They sang everything from “On Bended Knee” to “I’m Doing Fine” to ”Colour of Love”. The men handed out red roses to the crowd, who appeared to enjoy it as much as their fans.

As expected, the grand finale was the unforgettable “End of the Road”. Their renditions of all their songs were outstanding! These guys can still hit those notes just like they used to. They concluded the show with a brief closing tease.

The fans couldn’t get enough, chanting for more. In response, they delivered a fantastic finish with “Motownphilly”. Their dance routines were on point.

With 60 million albums sold throughout their career, Boyz II Men show no signs of slowing down after over thirty years in the music industry. The four-year wait was indeed worth it!