BeyonSlay’s Atlanta ‘Formation’ Tour Stop With Special Guests Rick Ross, T.I. Ludacris & More

Atlanta is a special city. The way black people live and love in this hot plate location is unlike any other place in the world. The minute you step off the plane (especially like how I did, coming f-rom 3 days in Monterey “wine and cheese” California), the soul of black folks cloaks you with a warm hug and a few “How are you, baby?” inquiries.

A-Town is already the capital for black women’s creative hairstyling. Nowhe-re else can you see purple, red, orange and striped shades of Remy quality weave and wigs than ATL. This is probably the defacto home for Beyonce’s BeyHive. Every size, complexion, nationality, gender blend, relationship status and career level is represented at a Beyonce show…and this epic third night of B’s Formation World Tour is no different.

Style wise, I saw it all as women put on their Friday night best (on a Sunday no less) to see Bey at the Georgia Dome. Everything f-rom stilettos that were too small to see-through sequins, hip squeezing latex and the tightest denim the law would allow. This is what Beyonce stans live for, a chance to play dress up for a live performance of their Queen.

Once inside the women in attendance–a bit sauced up f-rom pre-gaming at nearby bars–sang along wildly to every hit Formation Tour opener and Social Media Master, DJ Khaled brings out. Khaled’s chant of “We The Best” echoed through the cavernous arena, while he introduce the likes of Rick Ross, August Alsina, Kent Jones, Yo Gotti, 2Chainz, The Dream, T.I. and Ludacris spitting their biggest anthems. Back-to-back, non-stop energy and crowd craziness brought Khaled’s set to an uproarious peak, whe-re the audience was panting for more, and he abruptly shouts: “Khaled out!” Mic d-rop. Exits back stage like he knows he just smashed the place.

The 45-minute wait for Beyonce between sets isn’t bad when you have a stadium full of people to watch and crack jokes on (just being real folks). Trust, I’m sure a few jokes were thrown my way. But once those house lights go dark for a sec and you hear the music snip a bit and the lights return, the crowd goes crazy and B is still 10 minutes f-rom start time. I timed B’s real start by the arrival of my front-row seat neighbors, R&B star Monica and her ex-NBA player husband Shannon Brown. Both cool and cordial to everyone, taking pics with fans and with next row over friends and loves of Lil Wayne’s life, Toya Wright and their daughter Reginae.

With a dramatic entrance, Beyonce appears f-rom the fog in all black, a wide brim hat and commands every bit of stage authority as the greats before her. Just standing there bopping her head to the track and words “I Slay.” The ten story height of the LED screen projects her image for the whole venue to see and repeat after Beyonce  “Atlanta! If you came here all dressed up to have fun tonight say ‘I Slay!'” You know what was said in unison next…