Kenny Wizz has spent most of his life playing the music of Michael Jackson, however his show HIStory will be the biggest show yet.
It comes to the Yates Sterndale Bennett Theatre, April 16.
“The set is focussed on Michael Jackson’s music,” Wizz summarized, adding it includes 22 of Jackson’s songs from throughout his career form his early years with the Jackson 5, huge hits off of Thriller, to some of the music from near the end of his career.
It is only the tip of the iceberg, but it means he has been able to switch up the set over the past three years he has been touring the world with History.
The show includes a six piece band, six dancers and LED light show and a lot of different costumes.
“It isn’t chronological because I wanted to focus on his music,” he continued.
“A lot of people have never had the opportunity to see Michael Jackson live so I want to give people the experience,” he continued adding he would rather remember Jackson for the music rather than the scandals which plagued his latter days.
“He had so many number one hits and top 10 hits, that if I were to do all of them, it would take four hours,” he said adding he whittled his show down to two hours which reflects the breadth of his musical history.
Wizzwas beginning his career as a street performer around the time Jackson’s “Thriller ” album was released.
“It was a pretty basic cover. I had the same hair style that he did, which was the style at the time and people thought I looked like him,” Wizz said adding he hadn’t intended to make a career out of Michael Jackson‘s music, his fans, friends and family convinced him to.
“It was really the public interest in it that pushed me into it. And it’s been 28 years now,” he said.
It has taken him all over the world, literally.
“Dubai was the most interesting,” he said.
“He’d (Michael Jackson) never been there, so if was definitely an experience. It hasn’t been around for very, long- about 209 years, but it is so prosperous,” he observed.
“But his music is pretty well known everywhere,” he continued.
He eventually began a popular tribute show in Las Vegas, which featured quite a few Michael Jackson songs, which were so popular he decided to branch out in to a full Michael Jackson tribute.
“I never actually got to meet Michael, but I studied him a lot. I have so much respect for him” he said adding he has met Michael’s mother as well as siblings Janet and Jermaine, who saw his Vegas show and told him they liked it.
“ I met a lot of the people who were associated with him, so I probably could have met him through them,” he said.
“He always gave 100 per cent and I wanted to give that same amount of energy,” he continued.
The show is April 16 at the Yates Memorial Theatre beginning at 8 p.m. Tickets cost $54 from the City of Lethbridge Ticket Centre.
