New Edition took audience members down memory lane at the 2012 Funk Fest in Atlanta. The prolific boy band were the headliners of the festival which included opening performances by SWV and Dougie Fresh.
New Edition, noticeably without Bobby Brown, opened with their hits “If It Isn’t Love” and “You’re Not My Kind of Girl” from their album N.E. Heart Break.
Afterwards, Bobby Brown finally entered the stage with a slow strut while licking his tongue at several females in the audience.
With the majority of the capacity crowd on their feet, Bobby Brown led the group as the sung “Jealous Girl,” “Popcorn Love,” “Candy Girl,” and “Is This the End.”
Bobby Brown performed “Tender Roni” before he and Ralph Tresvant had a playful exchange on why Bobby Brown left the group in the mid-80s.
They eventually broke out into Bobby Brown-less songs such as “Mr. Telephone Man” and “Cool It Now.”
Tresvant and Johnny Gill performed several of their solo hits and Brown returned with “My Prerogative.” BBD’s smash hit “Poison” was undoubtedly the crowd’s favorite.
New Edition paved the way for the multi-platinum selling boy bands that became sensations in the late ’90s. There live performance proves that their careers are only rivaled by groups such as the The Temptations, Jackson 5 and the Four Tops.–words, photos and video by amir shaw
