This life affords us only so many chances. Entertainment, even fewer…
El DeBarge was, well… unusual. He was unable to complete a song, he slurred his speech, moved a little erratically and seemed to be, for lack of a better term, under the influence? Amidst the shaky video phone footage of the night’s events scattered on the web, it is evident something was wrong when El’s set came up, but it was unclear exactly what.
According to concertgoers, setting up for El’s time slot took longer than any of the other acts. When he finally did come on the stage, he sat down at the piano, and after repeatedly asking how much time he had, it seemed as though his mic had been turned off. After a few moments of back and forth between his assumed manager and what looked like security, the lights were turned off on the stage, and El was escorted away… exit stage left. All events occurred amidst loud booing from the crowd.
A YouTube video posted on the production companies facebook page shows El being interviewed by a man named Royal T after the incident, and he is miles away from the usual humble, well-spoken, smiling and timid person in the majority of his interviews. He talks over the interviewer, is far less than articulate, and uses street slang explain the incident, “I was out there, I was on the stage”, he says, ”I-I-I don’t know, I guess somebody was just drinkin’ some hater-ade, you know what I’m sayin, man”. Etterlene DeBarge, El’s mother, released a statement explaining that the reason El was unable to perform was because the concerts promoters did not plan on paying him. There were even rumors that he was simply exhausted. While we’ll probably never know the truth, thousands of paying ticket holders were upset with the situation surrounding DeBarge, and furthermore with the quality, or lack thereof, of the concert as a whole.
Full Story HERE
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Related: Letter to El DeBarge Fans
The Mo’Kelly Report is an entertainment journal with a political slant; published at The Huffington Post and EURWEB.com. For the most recent posts of Mr. Mo’Kelly, visit https://mrmokelly.com. Mr. Mo’Kelly can be reached at [email protected].
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19 responses to “El DeBarge Oddly Returns to the Stage – Sobriety Questioned”
Mo now you know this blog entry is useless without links to the videos in which you describe. You need to come correct! knowing your history with Mr. DeBarge, it looks a little suspect…
Mo, is right he was high on something…Sometimes it is just to soon to go back out….but, there are forces that are pushing him, because they want to get paid….
Come correct?…I linked you to the story. I didn’t write it. That’s all the “correct” I need. I would take issue with the writer of the story, as I did not write it. Hence the QUOTATION MARKS and link to the story. I did not describe ANYTHING. I merely posted an excerpt to a story and provided the link. The rest is up to you.
Ok..Ok….you didn’t have to get so sensitive! I’m just saying the article you posted painted El DeBarge in a very bad light…and although you did not write the article, it is on your blog and you could have initially provided a little more “evidence” to back up the article. Nevertheless..I appreciate the additional effort. However I am sadden to see one of my favorite singers go through some challenging times right now.
I was at the concert. No matter what his mom or anyone else says, he was obviously under the influence of something. At one point he almost walked right off the end of the stage, the promoter pulled him back. I did not boo EL, but it WAS a sad situtation….
@Kanuri…you know “come correct” is usually fightin’ words! 🙂 @Jett…I forgot, you do live out that way. Nice to hear a first hand account of the evening.
I was at the concert and it was tragic. Tickets weren’t cheap and the concert as a whole was a hot mess regarding sound issues, equipment problems, etc. Faith Evans was supposed to be a headliner and when they moved her up to an earlier slot you could tell something was wrong. It became more obvious when her set ended and the promoters started doing things to draw things out as long as they could to buy time, which pissed the audience off more than what followed.
When El finally came out, it was with assistance, as in someone literally walked him on stage. El immediately began roaming around the stage, at one point jumping on the drummer’s stand, at another attempting to go backstage while looking around for Faith Evans. When it finally became apparent that he could not perform, yeah, folks were pissed, but I don’t think anyone was as mad at him as at the promoters and his manager.
El had to have been somewhere during that extended setup, it had to have been apparent that he was under the influence. Why didn’t anyone stop him from coming out? The promoters lied saying everything from El just got off a plane to he didn’t have a chance to get himself dressed when all they had to say was the man didn’t feel well, then move on to the next act (Blackstreet).
I can’t say if all the booes were for El, but everyone in my section was pretty pissed with the promoters and the way they handled the situation. Women who remembered El from way back when were openly disappointed about his appearance, it was terrible to see him like that. The man should have stayed in rehab, and whoever convinced him he was ready did not have his best interests at heart.
Thank you Iris for your account. I’m not raining on the man, just highlighting what has been reported. I made it clear all along, how he next makes news is how he will be represented here. If it is for his music…kudos for him. If it is for his behavior related to his issues, the knife cuts both ways. Not celebrating in this in the least. But it has to be highlighted. And for those of you who are emailing me right now saying he performed “well” at Essence…that’s not the point. It’s not about whether he’s sober “some of the time.” It’s about whether he’s unprepared to return to the life he once knew due to his substance abuse issues.
You don’t measure the success of substance abuse rehabilitation relative to being sober 50 percent of the time in which he performs. That’s silly and don’t come in here with that.
He is not fully rehabilitated. I don’t care anything about the quality of his performances on any occasion until he is.
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I was at the concert too and recorded El’s appearance on HD video. I have watched it repeatedly and anyone who knows El DeBarge knows he can perform no matter how high he is. There’s video all over youtube that can attest to that. El kept trying to start and was repeatedly stopped by the promoters, Pickett Concert Series. El arrived late and they didn’t sell as many tickets as they needed to so they didn’t want to pay him or Chico. El didn’t want his reputation to suffer more so he walked on the stage without an earpiece. He jumped on the drums stand so the drummer could put his earpiece in. Chico was on the bill too and didn’t come on stage because they weren’t going to pay him. You know Chico shows up at his shows. The promoters put on the worst show I’ve ever seen, The speakers kept cutting out, Faith Evans complained about the sound, etc. The promoters are using El’s condition as an excuse for ripping off the ticket buyers.
Thank you RnBfan…but if you look at the video interview I also posted (at the bottom) it is clear El is high…drunk…or both. He was not in his right mind at all. I don’t necessarily disagree with you in regards to the money/promoter drama. Anyone familiar with these local shows knows that promoter drama is common. But one doesn’t necessarily negate the other. It doesn’t have to be an either/or…but a both/and proposition.
He could have been high AND there was promoter drama. The video proves the inebriation, but not the promoter issues.
no, mr. kelly,
you do not care about el performing well at essence cause the dirt
is really all you are after. it wouldn’t matter if el had 100 sober
shows as you will only focus on the 101st show he was not sober on.
you couldn’t care less about his sobriety or him as a person, you
know it, we know it and hopefully el knows it as well.
you are one of those pariahs in the entertainment industry that el
needs to keep away from. crab in the barrel, never happier than
when you see someone else is down. i guess you think that lifts you up.
and BEFORE you bring up the domestic violence again regarding el,
he served his time in jail on that and hopefully he is dealing
with those issues among others. at any rate, that is between
him and GOD. ISN’T your name mo kelly and not GOD?
yep, thought so!
Whatever Shell…my record is clear. That’s why they have the internet…the links live on. When he originally came out of rehab and started his comeback, I applauded him. You can’t argue that.
What you can’t argue either is that his demons have not been dealt with. I’m not “around” El. I’m in no way connected to his demons, his rehab or his comeback. You need to better research the history of El and myself.
His recovery is between himself and God. But his PUBLIC behavior, especially on a CONCERT STAGE will ALWAYS be up for discussion. I don’t need to be God to realize when a man is high on stage or in an interview.
If he’s not high on stage, I can’t comment about him being high on stage. That’s usually how it works. You’re praying not for his recovery or delivery from his demons, you’re praying for a musical comeback. There is a difference.
And why would I care if he’s performing well at Essence OVER AND ABOVE whether he’s dealt with his addiction? You prove my point. It’s not about how well he performs under ANY circumstances, it’s about the addiction and the behavior connected to it. I didn’t clown him in any way. I didn’t create the videos, I didn’t create the story in which I linked. I didn’t even create the speculation that he was high when he performed.
So no, the facts are not on your side. If you think I was going to blindly ignore all of these things because according to you he performed well at Essence…you are mistaken. That’s like saying since R. Kelly performed well last week we shouldn’t talk about the more important issues associated with him.
Not going to happen. Not here. Artists, their addictions, their behavior on and off stage will always be fair game in The Mo’Kelly Report. If you don’t like that, I suggest you stop visiting. It’s not ever going to change.
Sobriety and dealing with addiction demons will ALWAYS trump the quality of a performance. I didn’t gloat when he went back into rehab and I’m not gloating now. As long as you (and stans like you) are more concerned with a musical comeback instead of an addiction recovery, you will end up with the second coming of Whitney Houston.
We knew she was a crackhead for a decade and collectively didn’t care because she was churning out hits. Now nobody gives a damn because she can’t bring it musically anymore. It’s the same thing. Stop rooting for the comeback. Because I’m sure as heck not gon’ stop reporting the obvious news.
He is still high…THAT is news. His family has issues about El being trotted out solo…THAT TOO is news. If you like, I can really start gloating so you will know the difference.
If you were praying for him to be delivered you’d be spending less time worried about me posting videos and more time on your knees.
mr. kelly,
trust and believe, aint NOBODY worried about you! lol!
UNLESS you have a crystal ball or eyes in the back of your head(now that one I believe) you have no way of knowing whether I pray on my knees or not…but I’m willing to bet that YOU don’t.
But on the odd chance that you do, pray for el, whitney and any artists sobriety…oh,that’s right you don’t give a damn!
with that, I’m done!
I don’t know whether you get on your knees. But I do know, for someone who isn’t “worried” about me…you’re spending a whole lot of time, energy and text “not worrying” while you are here.
This is my editorial house. I’m supposed to be here.
Your reason for being here?
Exactly.
We don’t spend time with those things that don’t matter. Glad to know I matter so much to you.
Mr. Kelly, I have to agree with you on how (some) fans seem to be more concerned about El DeBarge’s musical comeback than his recovery. I hope it doesn’t have to be either or, but if it is, I’d rather see Mr. DeBarge healthy and drug-free. I do pray often that he gets the help he needs.
I just ran across this blog and HAD to comment. I am one of the fans that cares more about EL’s life than his career. I couldn’t care less if he sung another note, danced another dance or granted another interview. He doesn’t owe his fans anything. He paid his dues in the industry. An industry that buys and sells you like a cheap whore, you are only hot as your last album. Yet, the allure of fame and the drive to make good music blinds most artists. I say all of that to bring show that I don’t applaud your blog for pointing out the obvious because there is something in this country called free speech. Yet, if one cares about an artist, then they must ultimately weigh the importance of reporting the story vs. the affect or effect it will have on said person…. El googles himself….I don’t doubt it, what he finds can help or hurt.
His drug addiction is far more important and dangerous than me highlighting it. To suggest otherwise is laughable. Respectfully, it’s neither here nor there whether you might applaud my work. The truth doesn’t change.
My responsibility is to report the story. I didn’t create the video or put the drugs in his hand which led to him becoming high in the video. If El as you say is so concerned about how he is portrayed in the media, then it is incumbent upon him to not appear high in public. To protect him is his publicist’s job.
Not mine.
If he is not using drugs or conducting interviews while high, there’s nothing for me to report in regards to such news.
And if you truly don’t care whether El sings another note, then your first concern should be with his sobriety, not what commentary is offered in the blogosphere.
Me not telling the truth is enabling the behavior. It is not my job to pacify or excuse the behavior.
Say what you will but while we are all on our way to death eventually, El is taking the express bus to death right now! No one can deny that he’s back on some Sh*t! What’s worse is that out of all of Etterline’s children, he was initially the one that they thought would survive the DeBarge curse!!
I also question this whole comeback thig. Come back? Why would ANYONE think it was a good idea for him to go directly from jail and back into the music game again? WHHhhuuuuut (*a la Lil Jon*)!!? Do people really think that this man was just sittin’ up in jail SOBER and therefore think that he’s kicked the habit? Even if he didn’t get any drugs in jail – and being El DeBarge if any drugs were to be had, he’d get it – much like smelling the scent of an old lover’s perfume, all he had to do is be around drugs and the physical and mental memories would come flying back to him!There IS no hiding from it!! For an average person who doesn’t have the presures of stardom, the enormity of having to control themselves everyday must take almost every bit of concentration and positive self talk that they can muster. So can you imagine how hard it must be for someone who not only GREW UP with the stuff around him but has expectations placed on him the minute he gets some time to himself?
That’s a recipe for death.
So in my opinon, I don’t really care if he doesn’t come back. Couldn’t care less if he doesn’t drop one more note. If we want to hear his voice, we can go pick up his past albums and CD’s. To me, it’s way more important that he has a good quality of life and frankly drugs and a good quality of life CANNOT possibly co-exist.
I pray for him. Not the songs but for the man.
God help you El.