Queen Latifah

Rapper/actor has a new album
by Paul Schrag
Nov 21, 2007

Grammy-winning entertainment machine Queen Latifah is making a reportedly exclusive Northwest stop in ... Tacoma? Yes, not a week after we were blessed with the presence of George Clinton and 420 Funk Mob, another reason to give thanks and praise. Add Queen Latifah Wednesday, Nov. 28, live at the Pantages Theater to your Thanksgiving grace list.

For those who don’t know, Dana Owens was dubbed “Latifah” — “delicate” and “sensitive” in Arabic — at the age of 8 by a black Muslim cousin. Delicate and sensitive weren’t always adjectives fans might have affixed to the once Tommy Boy rap star, actress, cover model, etc. Latifah’s new album, Trav’lin’ Light, should shut up anyone who might doubt the truth of her cousin’s choice of nicknames. Honestly, it’s so good you might forgive her for that taxi movie she made with Jimmy Fallon. The album shows off the woman’s phenomenal voice in an evolving, smooth ride through jazz, soul, Broadway and blues. The album, and her performances, are chock full of classics — Smokey, Stevie Wonder, Roberta Flack — you name it. A far cry from her breakout single, “Wrath of My Madness,” Trav’lin‘ shows Latifah’s substantially delicate and sensitive side. Well worth slowing down for. — Paul Schrag

[Pantages Theater, Wednesday, Nov. 28, 8 p.m., $49-$99, 901 Broadway, Tacoma, 253.591.5894]

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