It was the final night of 1999 and the world was worried about computers breaking at midnight. While everyone else looked at their watches, Barbra Streisand stood on a stage in Las Vegas to show us something a machine could never do.
She was about to sing a song she first made famous thirty five years earlier. Most singers her age would lower the key or hide behind loud backup singers. Barbra did the opposite by standing alone in the spotlight with nothing but a giant orchestra behind her.
She started with a soft smile and then her voice took over the entire room. You could hear every breath and every clear note exactly as it came out of her throat.
Don’t Rain On My Parade. New Year’s Eve. Timeless. 2000.
One person who watched it said that nobody can hold a note like she does. Another fan remembered seeing the show in person and called it their favorite memory of all time. They talk about how her voice is a gift that never gets old.
That night in 2000 was a high point for a song that refuses to go away. Barbra set a high standard that no one dared to bring the show back to the big stage.
The 2023 Tony Awards (Lea Michele)
It took decades for a new voice to step into those famous shoes and try to keep the parade moving. That change finally happened on a big night in 2023 when a new star proved that great music can bridge the gap between generations.
Lea Michele stood on the stage at the Tony Awards to show that the torch had finally been passed. She sang the same fast lines and held the same long notes that Barbra made famous so long ago.
Barbra Streisand never tried to be fake or use technology to hide her real self. Her journey from a young girl in Brooklyn to a world icon is a story of staying true to your own sound. We do not see that kind of bravery very often in the music business today. Follow Barbra Streisand on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.