Anderson .Paak Gets Into His Groove at First New York City Show

Anderson .Paak is a man of the people -- an extremely talented, charismatic man. The Oxnard, Calif. singer, who's also a producer, has been buzzing for years, but with a new album and major hip-hop backing behind him (he just signed to Dr. Dre's Aftermath), 2016 is looking like it could be his year. Nothing thus far has proven this more than his first headlining show in New York Thursday night (Feb. 4).

Once the doors opened at 7 PM, septum-pierced hipsters, old school hip-hop heads and music industry folk of every age and racial background piled in, proving .Paak drew one of the most eclectic crowds that SOBs has housed in recent months. As expected for the "grown and sexy" crowd, many of whom had the excuse to turn the show into a date night, they kicked it by the back bar while the youngins made every attempt to be as close to the stage as possible. But even though it was a sold-out show, nothing about the place felt crowded or stuffy. Even in the front row, photographers, fan girls and journalists staking out their stops to get the best angles had comfortable standing room and actually struck up conversation about how long they had been a .Paak fan.

By 10:30 PM, the spot was filled to capacity and two opening live bands helped to distract from the anticipation. DJ JustDimy got the crowd jumping with turn up tracks like Future's "March Madness" and Kendrick Lamar's "Alright," with a healthy mix of '90s R&B as an appetizer for the full course .Paak would serve.

TDE's SZA, looking as good as ever, appeared onstage by 11 PM to introduce the man of the hour. Then, Anderson .Paak's voice was heard on the mic though he started singing from backstage. After an uproar of applause, the hooded crooner joined his band, The Free Nationals, onstage and the whole place went off. .Paak is clearly a seasoned vet in the spotlight. Commanding the crowd with call-and-responses and mic stand dance moves, .Paak ran through standouts off his latest project Mailbu like "Carry Me," "Am I Wrong" and "Silicon Valley." When he strutted towards the drum kit stationed to stage right to show off his chops, .Paak was welcomed with cheers.

Those that were unaware of Paak's production and instrumental background, honed from his youth in the church, were blown away. Throwing it back to 2014's Venice, .Paak delivered a standout performance of "Milk n' Honey" by going back and forth to the mic and center stage with every new verse.

About halfway through his set, the sweaty, smiley singer decided he wanted to be with the people. "Can we take a quick dance break, New York?" he asked before jumping into the crowd and mashing it up with a mob of adoring fans. By the time he got back to his trusty drum set for "Luh You," he didn't even have to tell people to sing along. Every girl in the spot became a back up singer for the chorus. Wrapping up his hour onstage with a thrashing live version of "Drugs," the raspy-voiced savant expressed nothing but gratitude for the crowd and shouted out early supporters. As the singer descended downstairs, audience members stood in awe of the caliber of showmanship they'd seen and compared it to memorable shows they'd seen years ago.

Coming off of a powerful show in the Big Apple, .Paak is headed to Europe for a headlining tour in the spring. The 29-year-old Aftermath signee may have been at this for a while (he once performed under the stage name Breezy Lovejoy), but after winning over a New York crowd, his future has never looked brighter.

Check out full video of Anderson .Paak's performances below and get used to hearing his name and voice. Yes, lawd!

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