Brian McKnight sings love songs for a reason.
“It’s the only thing we all have in common,” he said. “Everybody wants to love someone and be loved in return. I’m not sure that that would ever go out of style.”
McKnight, the popular R&B singer and songwriter, is about to kick off a 14-concert tour that makes stops in both New Jersey and Philadelphia.
The first concert is Saturday, March 12 at the New Brunswick’s State Theatre.
McKnight told NJ.com he wants to make sure audiences feel his passion.
“I have to give the kind of performance that when people leave, they’ll feel like they didn’t pay enough and would pay again,” he said. “You can’t come back with the same show. There are some folks who might phone it in, but I don’t do that. And I definitely wouldn’t do that in this part of the country.”
Because fans from New Jersey, New York and Philadelphia really know music, McKnight said his mindset is to “always go into these shows knowing I have to bring it.”
That doesn’t mean McKnight won’t play the hits, though. He says the tour’s intimate concert experience will be a “retrospective, nostalgia-filled night but with new songs, too.”
So, you can still expect to hear old favorites like “Back At One,” “Anytime” and “One Last Cry,” in addition to a few surprises like his new single “Faithfully.”
Plus, it will be all McKnight. No vocal trickery, just the artist and his legendary voice.
“I never do anything in the studio I can’t do live,” McKnight said. He then added with a laugh, “If I couldn’t pull it off in the studio, how the hell would I be able to do it live?”
Tickets to see McKnight at any of his other shows on the tour are available on sites like StubHub, Vivid Seats, Ticketmaster, SeatGeek and MegaSeats.
At the time of publication, the starting price for tickets to the State Theatre show is $74 before fees.
Prices for McKnight’s City Winery concerts in Philadelphia on March 17-18 start at $115 on StubHub before fees.
In May, McKnight will be at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center for the annual Ladies Night R&B Super Jam alongside headliners like Boyz II Men, Keyshia Cole and Dru Hill. Tickets are as low as $71 on SeatGeek before fees.
“If you are a fan of my music,” McKnight said, “and you either are with someone you care deeply about, or you used to be with somebody you care deeply about, or you’re looking for somebody to care deeply about and want a romantic night, then you should come.”
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Matt Levy covers the live entertainment industry, writing about upcoming concerts, festivals, shows and events. He can be reached at mlevy@njadvancemedia.com.