Diana Ross to Perform at NBC's Christmas in Rockefeller Center!

[Diana Ross Fan Club]

Diana Ross will be performing on November 28 at NBC's Christmas in Rockefeller Center special among with other stars like Tony Bennett, John Legend, Diana Krall...

https://people.com/tv/nbc-christmas-rockefeller-center-lineup-2018/

[RanRan79]

The lady is still in demand. This is good to know.

[vgalindo]

Can't wait. She has the perfect voice for Xmas songs. She is out promoting her new released Xmas album.

[khansperac]

Great news. This proves a couple of things. When she wants to she will do promotion, and is very strategic about it. It also proves that she can get any gig she wants.

[jobeterob]

https://wiky.com/news/articles/2018/nov/15/john-legend-pentatonix-diana-ross-more-to-sing-on-nbcs-christmas-in-rockefeller-center/?fbclid=IwAR3BZy0-xTJo8nOupP5rvgjhak0GHakgRujEVEIidzvgLhTojBlWE7qaZi w#.W-4WZijgfJ5.facebook

[Jimi LaLumia]

waiting for the Ross Arrival on the Macy's Parade on NBC TV!

[Jimi LaLumia]

the new Christmas alnum went from #567 on the Amazon chart before the show to #88 right after the show..and she's pushing the album again on the Tree Lighting show coming up shortly...MotownMakingMoney

[midnightman]

Definitely will help record sales and streams. Still a smart business lady Miss Di is...

[jobeterob]

Is this one this evening?

[jobeterob]

https://tomandlorenzo.com/2018/11/diana-ross-at-the-rockefeller-plaza-christmas-tree-lighting-in-nyc/

[PeaceNHarmony]

Is this one this evening?
Indeed. Here in the NYC area it is always a popular ratings-getter on TV and attracts thousands in person; I attended several times many a year ago! The performances are lip-synched; I would bet that only one of the scheduled performers gets criticism here for doing so!

[khansperac]

It’s on now

[marv2]

She performed on the same bill as John Legend for the Essence Festival and we all know how well that went. The lowest attendance for the entire festival occurred that night for some strange reason.........hehehehehehehehe!

[carlo]

She was simply amazing on the Rockefeller Tree Lighting special this evening!! She sang live and was in excellent voice. She even performed Home, live on TV! I am supremely shocked! Wow wow wow!! :)

[reese]

I thought she did a great job. The Xmas medley was a bit rushed, but she was really feeling HOME.

[Roberta75]

She performed on the same bill as John Legend for the Essence Festival and we all know how well that went. The lowest attendance for the entire festival occurred that night for some strange reason.........hehehehehehehehe!

Oh go sit down "bitter party of one" and watch Diane on NBC overv and over and over and iover and over and over again like you always do.

[jobeterob]

Perhaps borrow a few bucks from Diane to head over to the Carlyle for a Merry Christmas

[jobeterob]

https://youtu.be/WCFGO5dffk0

[Albator]

She was incredible! Her "Home" is strong and meaningful

[motownlover1964]

Wow! Thanks Jobeterob for the link. It's 5am out here in Oregon and I'm just overwhelmed watching and listening to Diana's performance. And, to have her sing "Home" was the icing on the cake.

[lucky2012]

Yes, thank you Jobeterob. This was amazing!

[jobeterob]

It was an amazing performance especially for someone nearly 75

[PeaceNHarmony]

Perhaps borrow a few bucks from Diane to head over to the Carlyle for a Merry Christmas
Didn't one of our members who attended Mary's show mention and inebriated fan rushing the stage? ;)

[PeaceNHarmony]

Oh go sit down "bitter party of one" and watch Diane on NBC overv and over and over and iover and over and over again like you always do.
#laughingstock !

[PeaceNHarmony]

https://youtu.be/WCFGO5dffk0
Thanks! VERY impressive; almost no one sings live at this event. It was about 38 degrees and windy in NYC last evening so singing could not have been easy. But when one is a real pro and hitting it out of the ballpark for 50+ years, one bats another home run! Thank you Diana Ross for all these years of perfection!

[Mark Desjardines]

Diana Ross brought it "HOME" last evening in NYC. That song resonated with me back in the day when she performed it in "THE WIZ." If you are at home with yourself, you can be at "home" anywhere. In the ensuing years, this at the time, much maligned film has been recognized as being ground breaking. Yes, indeed, Diana Ross brought Christmas "home" last evening!14854

[RanRan79]

She sounded great during the medley! "Home" was rather shaky and disappointing. I think the song is officially out of her range now. She either needs to tailor it to her current skills or leave it in the past. But I thought she was brilliant on the Christmas medley. She reminded me of Diana Ross 20 years ago. And she still looks so youthful. If she takes care of herself, I think she'll be around for a very long time. She has a youthful spirit about her, not like she's settling into being an old lady [[but not disrespecting herself by trying to be something she isn't). I really enjoyed the performance.

[khansperac]

Diana was incredible. Social media was on fire last night showering her with praise for her performance of “Home”. She looked georgeous on TV. Cant wait for the official HD version of this to be posted. You will hear how great she really sounded, and see how flawless she looked. Her eyes started to well up with tears as she sang “Home”. Bravo on a truly memorable performance.

[jobeterob]

She sounded great during the medley! "Home" was rather shaky and disappointing. I think the song is officially out of her range now. She either needs to tailor it to her current skills or leave it in the past. But I thought she was brilliant on the Christmas medley. She reminded me of Diana Ross 20 years ago. And she still looks so youthful. If she takes care of herself, I think she'll be around for a very long time. She has a youthful spirit about her, not like she's settling into being an old lady [[but not disrespecting herself by trying to be something she isn't). I really enjoyed the performance.

I thought Home was the highlight.

But do we seriously think she can be doing THAT at 80?? I'm not so sure.

[thommg]

Thanks! VERY impressive; almost no one sings live at this event.

Actually, most of the performers sing live at the Christmas Tree lighting. Usually, the backgrounds are tracked but the lead singers are live. Last night, John Legend, Pentatonix, Brett Eldredge all sang live. I believe most of the others did as well.

[carlo]

But do we seriously think she can be doing THAT at 80?? I'm not so sure.

Hey, look at Tony Bennett! All you need is passion.

[Jimi LaLumia]

the Ross Christmas album jumped to #41 on the Amazon Albums chart; on the Amazon Soul Albums chart it is now #2!!! and she's doing NBC's New Year's Eve show as well!! sell, sell, sell,GIRL!!

[marybrewster]

I thought "Home" was fantastic.

That said, I thought the medley sucked. She flubbed quite a few lines [[how do you not know a holiday standard?) and at one point, appeared to not be singing at all. Regardless, it's Diana Ross and it was fabulous.

I'm on the fence about the whole outfit. I swear I've seen it before, for Clinton's inauguration? Blue doesn't scream "Christmas" to me.

They did clearly save the best for last; save for Legend, I thought the others were horrid. Bennett included.

[reese]

I thought "Home" was fantastic.

That said, I thought the medley sucked. She flubbed quite a few lines [[how do you not know a holiday standard?) and at one point, appeared to not be singing at all. Regardless, it's Diana Ross and it was fabulous.

I'm on the fence about the whole outfit. I swear I've seen it before, for Clinton's inauguration? Blue doesn't scream "Christmas" to me.

They did clearly save the best for last; save for Legend, I thought the others were horrid. Bennett included.

Re the outfit, yes, she wore something similar when she sang GOD BLESS AMERICA at the concert before Clinton's inaguration.

Re last night, I thought HOME was the absolute best. I don't think she rehearsed the medley enough. Even if you know the songs, knowing which parts you are singing takes some practice. Someone posted on Facebook that she taped her performance a few times before she was satisfied. Apparently there were some technical issues as well as lyric issues with the teleprompter.

I wish they had showed her performance of AIN'T NO MOUNTAIN HIGH ENOUGH. Considering most of the other acts had two and sometimes three spots, Diana deserved the same.

[TheMotownManiac]

She performed on the same bill as John Legend for the Essence Festival and we all know how well that went. The lowest attendance for the entire festival occurred that night for some strange reason.........hehehehehehehehe!

What a cheap, childish, desperate, Donald Trumpish comment to make which has absolutely nothing to do with this thread seeing as there are no tickets being sold so there is no attendance comparative. If you WANT to talk about poor-to-dismal ticket sales, hit me up.

Ross has received universally rave reviews from a variety of sources for both appearances so far and the cd has charted.

You are are embarrassing yourself.

[bradsupremes]

I agree with MaryBrewster. She sounded good and looked incredible, but the Christmas medley was the weak spot. She lacked confidence and it showed especially reading off a teleprompter for lyrics. Of course she does it with ease and smile so you forget whatever mistakes she made. She may not have sung these songs in 25 years, but these Christmas songs are classic. These aren’t brand new songs no one has heard before. I think it would have been better if she had a live band with her. The prerecorded music [[which sounded kinda cheap to me - I hate synthesized music) didn’t work well either. “Home” was better and she definitely was more comfortable and confident singing it. Nonetheless it was great to see her and great promotion for her Christmas album. Didn’t she say in one of her recent Q&As that there was something else she had planned for the holidays?

Just side comment: Tony Bennett needs to hang up the mic. I understand he may still love performing, but he doesn’t vocally have it anymore and those duets he did with Diana Krall were awful. She sounded awful and it looked like they didn’t rehearse one bit. I felt like I was watching someone’s aunt and uncle trying to sing Christmas songs on a karaoke machine at a family get together.

[vgalindo]

What a great performance. And she was so beautiful. So many celebrities tweeted about how great she looked and sounded. I personally loved her performance of "Home". It brought tears to my eyes.

[jobeterob]

That’s definitely who I thought of ; and also Betty White; I notice Tony’s reviews from last night are not good while Diana’s were excellent

Sorry this is a reply to Carlo’s message about Tony Bennett

[marybrewster]

I think Brad summed up the Tony/Diana duet perfectly, except it's more like Grandpa and his 4th wife that's the same age as his daughter.

[marybrewster]

That’s definitely who I thought of ; and also Betty White; I notice Tony’s reviews from last night are not good while Diana’s were excellent

Sorry this is a reply to Carlo’s message about Tony Bennett

The problem is, Betty White could fart in a microphone and still be charming. Tony on the other hand looked like he just woke up from a nap and was in a rush to get back to his pj's.

[jobeterob]

I see John Legend replied to her on Twitter and simply said “Queen “

[marybrewster]

I think Brad summed up the Tony/Diana duet perfectly, except it's more like Grandpa and his 4th wife that's the same age as his daughter.

Or granddaughter.

[marybrewster]

I see John Legend replied to her on Twitter and simply said “Queen “

I hope Aretha doesn't have a laptop in heaven.

[thanxal]

I hope Aretha doesn't have a laptop in heaven.
Ain’t No Way.

[jobeterob]

I hope Aretha doesn't have a laptop in heaven.

One way or another, Aretha will have a statement on this for release shortly.

[carlo]

I wish they had showed her performance of AIN'T NO MOUNTAIN HIGH ENOUGH. Considering most of the other acts had two and sometimes three spots, Diana deserved the same.

Reese, her performance of I'm Coming Out/If We Hold On Together/ Ain't No Mountain High Enough will air on the New Year's Eve special. It was pre-taped that same night.

[dickiemint]

Thank you for posting this link for all the overseas fans to watch this very impressive performance by miss Ross she looked and sounds amazing. Glad to see she is getting her respect and dues so far into her career. Still flying the flag for Motown !!!

[khansperac]

I wish they had showed her performance of AIN'T NO MOUNTAIN HIGH ENOUGH. Considering most of the other acts had two and sometimes three spots, Diana deserved the same.

Diana had a “segment”. She sang more than 2 songs when you think about it. She sang a medley of 4 songs, and then sang another song “Home”.

[reese]

Reese, her performance of I'm Coming Out/If We Hold On Together/ Ain't No Mountain High Enough will air on the New Year's Eve special. It was pre-taped that same night.

Thanks for the info!

[khansperac]

I saw the clip and she really only sings the words “ I’m coming out “ that intro part and that was it, As she walked onto the stage. She then sings “if we hold on together” and “ain’t no mountain high enough” the regular version, not the dance version she sang at the AMA’s. I thought she would, seeing how it’s New Year’s Eve and everybody is there to party.

[bradsupremes]

I think Brad summed up the Tony/Diana duet perfectly, except it's more like Grandpa and his 4th wife that's the same age as his daughter.

LOL!!!! Exactly!

[Ollie9]

After first reading some of the comments i watched Diana's performance with a little trepidation. I'm pleased to say i was pleasantly suprised. I thought she sounded clear and strong on the christmas medly and seemed to be having a good time.
I agree with ranran in that if she is going to continue to sing Home, the latter segment of the song needs to be modified somehow to suit her voice of now as she does struggle to hit those big notes. Having said that her performance of Home here is much tighter then the strained Hollywood Bowl version where i thought Diana herself looked unhappy with her performance.
I n my heart i long to hear the pre 2005 Diana, but for a lady of 74 she ain't doing half bad.

[Philles/Motown Gary]

I thought Diana was dazzling from start to finish. She looked gorgeous and sounded fantastic throughout the entire performance. I loved the medley. When she started it with "Someday At Christmas", one of my two favorite Motown Christmas songs, she melted me from the start. [BTW, I sure wish I knew Diana's [[and, while we're at it, Smokey's) secret for still looking so young. Must be something in their drinking water!]

[PeaceNHarmony]

I thought Diana was dazzling from start to finish. She looked gorgeous and sounded fantastic throughout the entire performance. I loved the medley. When she started it with "Someday At Christmas", one of my two favorite Motown Christmas songs, she melted me from the start. [BTW, I sure wish I knew Diana's [[and, while we're at it, Smokey's) secret for still looking so young. Must be something in their drinking water!]
Agree, agree, agree, and ... agree! Sometimes, living a good and decent life does have its rewards!

[Philles/Motown Gary]

Agree, agree, agree, and ... agree! Sometimes, living a good and decent life does have its rewards!
Ain't it the truth, Peace!

[RanRan79]

I thought "Home" was fantastic.

That said, I thought the medley sucked. She flubbed quite a few lines [[how do you not know a holiday standard?) and at one point, appeared to not be singing at all. Regardless, it's Diana Ross and it was fabulous.


She did do some flubbing, but she sounded great and for me that's all that mattered. The Queen of Motown is allowed to flub or just stand there while the music plays and not sing a note.;) It was so great to finally have live versions of some of her great Christmas renditions, even if in medley form. On the other hand I don't understand why anyone thought "Home" was a knockout. I guess it's all in what we hear. She didn't sound good to me at all when the song really gets going. But apparently the takeaway is that she gave something for everyone to enjoy. Those who loved the medley didn't care for "Home", and those who loved "Home" didn't care for the medley. That's a million times better than everyone saying the whole performance sucked. Lol But she was in fine Diana form and she's getting rave reviews in the media and social media. I love that she's always enlarging her crown as opposed to shrinking it. The Queen still reigns Supreme.

[RanRan79]

I hope Aretha doesn't have a laptop in heaven.


Ain’t No Way.

Oh me, oh my! Too soon guys. I laughed, but still way too soon.

[RanRan79]

After first reading some of the comments i watched Diana's performance with a little trepidation. I'm pleased to say i was pleasantly suprised. I thought she sounded clear and strong on the christmas medly and seemed to be having a good time.
I agree with ranran in that if she is going to continue to sing Home, the latter segment of the song needs to be modified somehow to suit her voice of now as she does struggle to hit those big notes. Having said that her performance of Home here is much tighter then the strained Hollywood Bowl version where i thought Diana herself looked unhappy with her performance.
I n my heart i long to hear the pre 2005 Diana, but for a lady of 74 she ain't doing half bad.

Yeah, "Home" doesn't start off bad, it's just when the song cranks up that her voice starts going all over the place. Not a good look for Ross. Those notes are no longer in her range, which of course is a loss because when she could sing in that range she always tore it up, but her lower register has always been strong and an under utilized part of her artistry and it's still glorious at this point so with the songs that have her reaching, she should start tailoring them to the current capabilities of her voice. I love her lower range, always have. But you're right, she aint doing half bad at this point. There was a point after 2003 that I would've sworn her voice was completely shot, but over the last couple years she's come back. I'm glad about it.

[carlo]

I thought her performance of Home was one of the best and strongest vocal performances she has given in the last decade. Same goes for the Christmas medley. She delivered/belted some very strong notes, especially at the conclusion of Home. I was actually shocked and moved. I like to think that I know good singing? :confused: So it surprises me to see so many criticisms. For her age and in the context of some of her past performances/concerts in the last few years, this appearance was superior IMHO. I believe her weight loss and recent focus on her health has allowed her to deliver stronger vocals in the past year. I suppose we all hear/appreciate different things. Just reiterating my earlier praise, since most of the comments here are leaning toward the critical side, which is fine...

Tony Bennett is a treasure. Perhaps my Italian heritage is making me a little biased, as he reminds me of a sweet old Nonno, but I love seeing him on TV and I love witnessing his performances. We need to appreciate our legends while they are still here. I did not think his singing was awful. I think there are other aging singers out there who consistently cannot sing in tune or decent tone anymore who are far worse. For me, he was certainly not on a bad level at all. I enjoyed him and Diana Krall. He did seem a little lost at one point and was clearly reading the lyrics on the teleprompter, but for his age, he's doing great. We'd all be blessed to live such a long life as him, doing what we love. I respect that.

[bradsupremes]

ITony Bennett is a treasure. Perhaps my Italian heritage is making me a little biased, as he reminds me of a sweet old Nonno, but I love seeing him on TV and I love witnessing his performances. We need to appreciate our legends while they are still here. I did not think his singing was awful. I think there are other aging singers out there who consistently cannot sing in tune or decent tone anymore who are far worse. For me, he was certainly not on a bad level at all. I enjoyed him and Diana Krall. He did seem a little lost at one point and was clearly reading the lyrics on the teleprompter, but for his age, he's doing great. We'd all be blessed to live such a long life as him, doing what we love. I respect that.

I think a lot of the reason why Tony Bennett is held in such high regard as to with the fact he is the last of the classic crooners. While I do enjoy his work, the music industry tends to overdo it with him. I guess I'm Tony Bennett tired. He's brought out for every major award show. Every special duet with some new major pop star or some music special. I almost want to scream "We get it. We are suppose to like Tony Bennett." We look at the Grammys and they should just rename the Best Traditional Pop Album category "the Tony Bennett category" since he's won so many times [[several were undeserved - Take a look at the 1996 and 1998 years...Julie Andrews should have won). While I think it's great that he still wants to keep performing, he's losing his edge and instead of feeling great, I feel sad for him. The two duets he did with Diana Krall were not good. There comes at time when you say "I've done my best" and step back.

[bradsupremes]

BTW, I sure wish I knew Diana's [[and, while we're at it, Smokey's) secret for still looking so young. Must be something in their drinking water!]

Diana's secret for youth is her genetics. Smokey's secret is plastic surgery.

[jobeterob]

That Smokey look is scary - you see it and want to say "don't smile, don't talk, you might tear"

I agree that there comes a time to say "enough is enough"; it's so easy to criticize a 75 or especially a 90 year old; we should value them, but they need to know when it isn't working anymore; Tony Bennett has pretty much pushed it as far as it can go

[Ollie9]

Yeah, "Home" doesn't start off bad, it's just when the song cranks up that her voice starts going all over the place. Not a good look for Ross. Those notes are no longer in her range, which of course is a loss because when she could sing in that range she always tore it up, but her lower register has always been strong and an under utilized part of her artistry and it's still glorious at this point so with the songs that have her reaching, she should start tailoring them to the current capabilities of her voice. I love her lower range, always have. But you're right, she aint doing half bad at this point. There was a point after 2003 that I would've sworn her voice was completely shot, but over the last couple years she's come back. I'm glad about it.

I totally agree. Diana's lower register is still rather good which is why she sounds better then ever when singing "Dont Explain" I think the big belting endings on songs such as "Home" and "Amazing Grace" need to be softened with perhaps a lot more help from the backing singers on the final dramatic notes. Having said that this version of "Home" IMO is head and shoulders above the Hollywood Bowl version which sadly i thought Diana really struggled with.
Without wishing to sound parrot like, i think she is still good for 74 though.

[daviddh]

thanks for sharing this, loved it. glad to see her on tv. nice treat for us all. love the album, hope it does well for her

[jobeterob]

Diana's secret for youth is her genetics. Smokey's secret is plastic surgery.

Yes of course for Smokey

That’s gotta be botoxed to the max; I wonder if it hurts when he does a big smile?