Nineties pop icon Jordan Knight, former member of boy band New Kids on the Block and a newly-made reality TV star, serenaded an audience of 150 Boston University fans, mostly female, with New Kids standards, solo hits and some new material Friday night at the George Sherman Union’s BU Central.
Brainz Davis, best known for his 1992 platinum-selling single “Oochie Coochie,” released under the name MC Brains, heated up the crowd with a 45 minute set, during which he danced with female audience members and proclaimed himself an emcee, not a rapper.
Knight hit the stage 15 minutes after the conclusion of Davis’ set amongst an eruption of high-pitched squeals from the fans. Proving he had no qualms about playing old material right away, Knight started the night with the crowd-pleasing “Step By Step,” a song from his days with New Kids on the Block, for which he busted out New Kids dance moves. He then launched into his late ’90s solo hit, “Give It to You.”
After playing a few crowd requests and a short improvised song about Boston sports, Knight invited the “wildest, loudest” girl to join him on stage. While many fans tried to cheer their way into Knight’s heart, many audience members pointed to College of Arts and Sciences junior Jessica Stein, who said she arrived at BU Central at 3:30 p.m. to be the first person inside when the doors opened at 8:30 p.m. Knight sat her on a chair next to his keyboard and performed “I’ll Be Loving You (Forever)” at her request.
“Did you see my dream just come true?” Stein said.
Knight also played a few songs from his new release, The Fix, before concluding with “The Right Stuff.”
Programming Assistant Chris Simons said BU Central was looking for a hometown favorite to play in Boston on Saint Patrick’s Day, and that he was pleased with the turnout.
“It’s great that we can have 150 people here on Saint Patrick’s Day,” he said. “Everyone who came is having a good time, and it makes me happy when concerts work.”
Knight is touring the country to promote his new EP in addition to his new single, “Where Is Your Heart Tonight,” which peaked at number 12 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart this year. He said he is working on a new full-length album of mostly love songs he estimates will be released this summer.
Knight said he wanted to play at BU on Saint Patrick’s Day because he wanted to be able to celebrate the day in his hometown and has found a new niche in touring colleges.
“[Performing at colleges] is kind of a new venture for me,” Knight said before the show. “I get a really, really, really great reception at them. I’m just discovering the college circuit.”
His reception at BU proved to be no different from the other schools he played at, including Michigan State University and Auburn University. Despite the small crowd, those in attendance said they were extremely enthusiastic. Some of the biggest cheers of the night came when Knight asked who owned the New Kids on the Block lunchbox and bed sheets.
After the show, fans described the extremes of their obsession with Knight when they were younger.
College of Fine Arts freshman Julie Kun danced with Knight onstage during one of his new songs.
“I went to a concert, I had all the Barbie dolls and pillows and everything,” she said.
Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences senior Lisa Ferreira said she came to the event because she has been a Knight fan since she was a little girl.
“I had one of those giant buttons with his face on it,” she said. “I had a pillowcase, a poster … I had the trading cards.”
Students said because their love for New Kids on the Block drew them to the show, they were impressed with Knight’s performance.
“I wanted to see what he was up to now,” Kun said. “It was great. I wasn’t expecting him to take it back to New Kids on the Block, so that was fun.”
Ferreira said she would come see Knight again because of his successful performance Friday night.
“I was really surprised he was still able to hit those prepubescent high notes,” she said.
