♪ >>> IN THE BEGINNING OF MY MUSICAL JOURNEY, A GOAL OF MINE WAS TO BE IN ONE OF THOSE VEGAS SHOWS. >> THERE IS A RESURGENCE IN LAS VEGAS NOW, AND I'M VERY HAPPY ABOUT THAT. I THINK IT'S GOING TO BE REALLY BOOMING AGAIN. IT IS BOOMING AGAIN, BASICALLY, NOW. >> I SEE LAS VEGAS AS THAT PLACE THAT REINVENTS ITSELF. >> LISTEN, THIS ISN'T YOUR GRANDMAMA AND YOUR GRANDPAPA'S LAS VEGAS. YOUNG FOLKS ARE PLANNING TRIPS TO VEGAS AROUND THEIR FAVORITE ARTISTS, AROUND THEIR FAVORITE SHOWS. >> BUT IT'S ALL DICTATED BY THE MUSIC. AND YEAH, THROUGHOUT THE YEARS, I THINK IT HAS KIND OF EVOLVED. RATHER IT WAS EDM, RATHER IT WAS NIGHTCLUB CULTURE. >> USHER WAS MY MAN SO I WENT TO SEE HIM. >> UR I PRESENTS A BRAND-NEW LAS VEGAS RESIDENCY. >> HE WAS WONDERFUL. AND HE WAS ONE OF THE PEOPLE THAT TOLD ME AWHILE BACK HE DIDN'T WANT TO PLAY LAS VEGAS. >> THEN AT ONE POINT I WAS LIKE, MAN, I DON'T KNOW IF I'M READY TO GO. AM I -- IS IT OVER FOR ME IF I GO TO LAS VEGAS? BECAUSE I'M THE YOUNGEST DUDE. NO, THAT'S IT. ♪ >> A LOT OF THE YOUNGER ARTISTS ARE PLAYING THERE NOW BECAUSE VEGAS HAS ALL THE HOOPLA. >> WHEN I CAME HERE IN 2000, SOME OF MY PEERS, LIKE IN NEW YORK, WOULD GO, "WHY ARE YOU GOING TO VEGAS? THAT'S WHERE OLD ENTERTAINERS GO TO DIE." THAT WAS THE ATTITUDE IN THOSE DAYS. >> THERE AS A TIME IN WHICH VEGAS KIND OF LOST ITS LUSTER. THEN THERE WAS A SHIFT AGAIN. AND THE NEXT THING YOU KNEW, YOU KNOW, YOU HAD ARTISTS THAT WERE ON THE CHARTS RIGHT NOW, HUGE POP NAMES. YOU'RE GETTING MARIAH CAREY, JANET JACKSON, JENNIFER LOPEZ, SILK SONIC, JOHN LEGEND. ALL OF THEM HAVE HAD RESIDENCIES IN LAS VEGAS. THEY WERE ABLE TO USHER IN THE NEW LAS VEGAS, WHICH WAS A HUGE PRODUCTION OF A CONCERT. THERE'S THIS ONE PROMO CLIP THAT CAESARS PALACE DID TO ANNOUNCE MARIAH CAREY'S RESIDENCY. ♪ IF YOU CAN GET THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE TO SEE MARIAH IN A PINK EXPENSIVE CAR JOUST ANNOUNCING HER SHOW, THOSE SAME PEOPLE WILL COME BACK AND BUY TICKETS NIGHT AFTER NIGHT. ♪ >> COME HERE, LET ME SHOW YOU SOMETHING. LISTEN, NOBODY GETS THIS LOOK. WE'RE ACTUALLY LITERALLY ON STAGE -- >> USHER'S GOING INTO HIS THIRD LESS AGAINST IN LAS VEGAS. EVERY TIME HE KICKS OFF A NEW SHOW THERE, HE REALLY ELEVATES IT. ♪ PUSHING THE BOUNDARIES WITH THINGS LIKE ROLLER SKATES. ♪ I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU CAME TO DO ♪ >> LOOK, WE'VE SEEN A LOT OF THINGS IN VEGAS BUT WE'VE NEVER SEEN ROLLER SKATES. ♪ SPOTLIGHT BIG STAGE ♪ >> AND IT WAS ONE OF THE FIRST ASPECTS OF HIS CONCERT THAT STARTED GOING VIRAL. ♪ >> SKATING ON STAGE. THERE'S A STRIP CLUB ON THE STAGE. THERE'S USM BUCKS FLYING ALL OVER THE PLACE. YOU'VE GOT GIRLS LITERALLY HOVERING IN THE AIR ALMOST, YOU KNOW, 30 FEET IN THE AIR, AND THIS IS, LIKE, OF SOME CULTURE THAT YOU'VE NEVER EXPERIENCED BUT YOU FEEL LIKE YOU HAVE. BUT NO. IT'S OUR CULTURE. IT IS VERY SPECIFICALLY A CULTURE FROM ATLANTA. THIS IS A SHOW THAT IS IMMERSIVE IN ALL OF THE WAYS FROM THE SONGS TO THE STORYTELLING -- ♪ THESE ARE MY CONFESSIONS ♪ >> THE DANCING, THE WARDROBE, THE TECHNICAL SIDE OF IT. THE ASSISTANT OF SUPPORTING CASTS. >> ONE OF THE THINGS I LOVE ABOUT VEGAS, WHEN YOU GO TO THESE BIG SHOWS, YOU NEVER KNOW WHO YOU'RE GOING TO SEE EVERY NIGHT. THIS CLIP LIKE NE-YO SHOWS UP AND DOES A SONG OF HIS OWN DOING USHER'S RESIDENCY. ♪ >> I GOT OUT THERE AND I GOT MORE NERVOUS THAN I'VE BEEN IN A REALLY, REALLY, REALLY LONG TIME. ALL OF A SUDDEN IT'S LIKE -- OH, THAT'S MY HEART, DAMN. OH, WAIT, WAIT A MINUTE, WHAT IS THIS? >> SO USHER TOLD ME HE WAS GOING TO DO ONE OF HIS FAVORITE SONGS OF MY MINE. ♪ MY SEXY LOVE ♪ >> WHICH IS WHY WE HAD TO SING THAT SONG. BEING ABLE TO SHARE A STAGE WITH THAT MAN WAS DEFINITELY A BUCKET LIST SCRATCH-OFF FOR ME, YEAH. I HEAR THE STORY ABOUT HOW THE RAT PACK DID THEIR THING, HOW THEY WOULD SHOW UP AT EACH OTHER'S SHOWS, AND THEY WOULD SUPPORT EACH OTHER. >> LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, PUT YOUR HANDS TOGETHER FOR MY BROTHER, NE-YO. >> WE KIND OF ARE LIKE THE NEW RAT PACK, YOU KNOW WHAT I'M SYING? >> THEY EPITOMIZED WHAT IT WAS TO JUST ENTERTAIN. AND TOOK IT -- LIKE SAMMY DAVIS JR. ESPECIALLY, BECAUSE HE WAS THE ONE THAT LOOKED LIKE ME. ♪ >> MY SHOW IS ABSOLUTELY INSPIRED BY JUST THE ESSENCE WHAT WAS VEGAS IS. I FEEL LIKE BLACK ENTERTAINERS IN LAS VEGAS CRAWLED AND SCRAPED SO THAT WE COULD FLY. IF NOT FOR THE STRUGGLES THEY ENDURED, THERE WOULD BE NO POSSIBILITY OF SOMEBODY LIKE ME GETTING BACK TO MY HOMETOWN AND PERFORM ON SOME OF THE BIGGEST STAGES IN VEGAS. >> THE MUSICIANS TODAY CAN NEVER REPAY THOSE OLDER MUSICIANS WHO CAME HERE. THEY ARE STANDING ON THOSE SHOULDERS. ♪ AND NOW THE END IS NEAR ♪ >> LISTEN, WE ALL KNOW AND LOVE THE FRANK SINATRA VERSION OF "MY WAY." ♪ AND DID IT MY WAY ♪ >> BUT NOW USHER'S "MY WAY" IS BRINGING A WHOLE OTHER LENS TO LAS VEGAS. ♪ MY WAY MY WAY MY WAY OH OH ♪ >> TO SEE THE TYPE OF PROGRESS THAT WE IN AMERICA HAVE AS MINORITIES IS GOOD. THERE'S SO MUCH MORE THAT WE NEED TO ADDRESS, THOUGH. WOULDN'T IT BE GOOD TO ONE DAY OWN OUR OWN HOTEL? HAVE OUR OWN THEATER AND HAVE OUR OWN STAGE AND STUFF LIKE THAT? WELL, WE'RE LAYING THE GROUNDWORK TODAY FOR THAT TO BE A REALITY IN THE FUTURE. >> I GENUINELY FEEL LIKE THE SKY'S THE LIMIT FOR VEGAS. IT'S EXCITING TO CONSIDER WHAT COULD BE COMING. WHO KNOWS, WHO KNOWS? AS LONG AS I'M A PART OF IT. >> I KNOW I WANT TO BE SOMEBODY WHO CAME TO THIS CITY AND DID SOMETHING THAT YOU REMEMBERED AND YOU WILL NEVER FORGET. THAT'S WHAT I HOPE FOR. YEAH.