New Kids On The Block hit Darien Lake

The late 80's and early 90's were in full swing this past Thursday night as the Magic Tour featuring New Kids on the Block, Paula Abdul, and DJ Jazzy Jeff was on full display. NKOTB (also known by) has brought two acts that were also synonymous with that time period: Paula Abdul and half of the duo of DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince.

This is the first time both Abdul and DJ Jazzy Jeff have played the venue. KNOTB have played it before.

First up was DJ Jazzy Jeff. He mixed a half-hour set that included snippets of a ton of songs. A few of them were House of Pain's "Jump Around," The Bee Gees' "Stayin Alive," and DJ Kool's "Let Me Clear My Throat. Of course, the biggest response he got was when he mixed in his own song, "The Fresh Prince of Bel Air" theme. DJ Jazzy Jeff was all smiles and delivered the beats that warned up the stage for the following 2 acts.

Paula Abdul made the most of her 30-minute set with a barrage of hits that included "Rush, Rush," "Opposites Attract," and "Forever Your Girl." She had a bunch of dancers accompanying her that included a few costume changes too. After she performed her opening number, "Straight Up," with one of her dancers coming over after the completion of the song with a CO2 tank to administer oxygen. She told the crowd, "Are you kidding me? This is what 62 looks like," as she received an applause from them. Abdul looked in great shape and did a splendid job making the most of her short time frame on stage.

The New Kids On the Block released their 8th studio record in May, titled 'Still Kids.' The group focused on performing tracks from this record along with select cuts from their back catalog. Donnie Wahlberg, Joey McIntyre, Jonathan Knight, Jordan Knight, and Danny Wood are all in their 50's. Most of the 8,500 in attendance were females, ages ranging from mid-30's to mid-40's. They first appeared on stage with what looked like digital boxes to mimic the dolls they had back in the early 1990's. There was no backing band as the guys sang to prerecorded music. The entire show was performed to choreographed dance moves. They told the crowd we're going back to the beginning as they did their first hit song in "You Got It Right (The Right Stuff)." The New Kids also surprised the crowd by venturing into the audience during "Block Party" and "Tonight."

They did the songs on 5 small makeshift platforms, each lit up by different colors. Wahlberg climbed half up the ladder to where the spotlight platform was to rev up the crowd even more during "Tonight." DJ Jazzy Jeff came back on stage and joined the group for 5 songs. A group sang Lucky fans who were celebrating birthdays were invited on stage during the performance of the song "Happy Birthday." Jordan Knight sang "A Love Like This" while the others grabbed one of the lucky girls who were flanked on each side of the stage (30 VIPs were positioned on each side of the stage throughout the show). At the start of the song "Hangin' Tough," the band did a wardrobe change as they were handed 5 Boston Celtic jerseys. The group, originally hailing from Boston, was proud to wear the 2024 World Champion jerseys.

NKOTB have played the WNY numerous times since reuniting back in 2008, but the fans keep coming back. With a new album in tow, who knows how long the band will keep up the dance moves for its fans. As long as the group keeps it going, I'm sure the fans will still be there to support them as long as they do.

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