two:
avril lavigne at a shopping mall
shania twain at a resort
My dad used to work for the local cable company in Key West which had a tiny TV studio and a radio station. My dad worked on the TV side but used to converse with the radio DJ. He told me once that before he became famous Jimmy Buffet used to go by there trying to get the DJ to play his records.
sharemust have been in the late 60s or early 70s
shareGemini
shareHaving seen over a thousand gigs, quite a few.
shareculture club?
shareI’ve seen them on one of those 80s revival shows, which was long after they were famous.
sharei think you misunderstood this thread.
shareNot at all, you asked if I’d seen artists before they were famous - having seen over a thousand gigs the answer is numerous - don’t forget, the main act will have a number of (mostly) unheard of support acts, some of which would subsequently become famous in their own right.
You then mentioned Culture Club, which was a ‘no’ from me because I saw them long after the peak of their fame, not before.
Hopefully, I’ve put a bit more meat on the bone 👍
The Crash Test Dummies. Had a great chat with them in line for the rollercoaster at WEM. (RIP mindbender).
K.D. Lang when she was on a local tv show called Sun Country. (Also met Ian Tyson that day) My mom's cousin was singing on the same show as her and I was in the dressing room with her. She was wearing a skirt with army men sewn on it, and I was fascinated with them. She was so kind, and she let me look at all of them and took a picture with me. Not because I knew who she was....I just loved her skirt.
My friend's sister was dating Ewan from the Sheepdogs when they were in university, and I met him on a visit. They hadn't even recorded an album yet.
Maybe not as famous as others but, Grammy winning opera singer Nathan Berg. He is the brother of one of my old university professors, who I'm still friends with. He wasn't unknown when I met him, as he'd already been nominated for a Grammy at the time, but I'd say he's more acclaimed now.