It’s fair; I may be a little biased because of how much I adore her but Summer Walker’s return to the stage was a great moment.
The R&B songstress took the stage in Atlanta Friday (Feb. 18) for a collaboration with Amazon and a live-streamed Twitch performance. The show was part of the platform’s “Black Culture Is…” initiative to celebrate black artistry. It warmed my heart to hear the crowd cover Summer with praise for her return. “Thank you guys for coming out, I haven’t had a show in sooooo long,” she shared on her Instagram page. “I get to do it like that, and it’s all because of y’all,” she told the crowd at the Coca-Cola Roxy last night. They were eating up every single word.
Where’d she go?
Well, for starters, Summer Walker is a new mom. I can’t imagine how much her life has changed over the last 5 years , or so. Parenthood is certainly a big change that is also the priority – well, in most cases. She also deals with social anxiety and it has made performing difficult for her. The public shamed her for the resulting “awkwardness” of her social struggles and its affect on her stage presence. Critics began questioning why Walker would choose such a famous profession. Even Wendy Williams questioned why Walker would wear revealing outfits as someone dealing with social anxiety. In true internet fashion, people began to make fun of her and her acceptance speech at the Soul Train Awards (2019). The moment overwhelmed her.
“I can’t even accept an award in peace,” Walker said. “You see how I spoke…I was scared. Everyone else gave a long ass speech. I didn’t because I have social anxiety.”
