On Wednesday, ya gurl got the greenlight to attend Ryan Leslie’s listening presentation for “Transition” at The Times Center in NYC. And eventhough I already checked out his album at Chuck King Studios in early October, I opted to see Ryan one more time. Upon arriving to the venue, I saw the long entrance line and ya already know I don’t do lines…luckily my boo and his homie were at the front of line and within 5 minutes we were in…checked our names at the door, checked our coats and headed to the greygoose open bar and immediately began mingling as awaited for the show to start. Soon after downing two Greygoose “Diamond Girls”, it was time for folks to enter the stage area where no drinks or food were allowed, thus forcing industry folks to chug. Picture a crowd of folks gulping the last drops of their cocktails to run inside and snag a good seat. The boo and I quickly snag seats right upfront and continued mingling for the next 15 minutes. On stage was a projector screen displaying RLes’ “Transition” album & a piano on the far right. Shortly scouting the audience and making a quick run to the ladies room, the lights slowly dimmed and the announcer introduced Mr. Ryan Leslie to the stage. And for the next hour and change, RLes took us on the journey on the creative process of completing “Transition” as well as weave in the story of the young woman he apparently chased across the world coining her as the inspiration of the album. With a few key strokes on the piano and lil’ storytelling, RLes depicted his “Transition” with visuals of studio sessions including industry peers like Pusha-T, guitar player from NERD, and even Drake. He even gave us a sneak peek to his new video and 2nd single “Never Gonna Break-Up”…
And even though I appreciate the man’s talent and musicianship, I still left the listening session feeling like this is an incomplete project and not as good as his self-titled debut album. Ryan is extremely talented but “Transition” feels bit rushed and lacking in the lyrical department…on the other hand the beats are SICK!
Once the listening session ended, people exited the venue and a few lingered for unfinished networking. I spotted my fellow Ecuadorian sis, Adrienne Bailon, walking out and of course had to pose for a flick.
Then I of course went on pap-mode and snapped some pics of Ryan posing next to his piano and chillen with Universal honcho Sylvia Rhone.
Overall, Ryan Leslie and the Chambers Group never fail to impress with their venue selection and smooth flowing events. Though I expected a bit more from “Transition”…I still love you RLes.
Adrienne Bailon Ryan Leslie Posted under Exclusive Event, Featured, NYC Events, YouTube Sensation by LexAve
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