From Keke Palmer to Issa Rae, Every Star Usher Has Serenaded at His Vegas Residency
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Fans have been clamoring for tickets to Usher's Las Vegas residency ever since it was first announced in 2022, and yes, that includes celebrities, too. Similar to Taylor Swift's Eras Tour, Usher's shows at the Dolby Live theater, located inside Park MGM, have been star-studded, featuring appearances from just about everyone, it seems.
Teyana Taylor, Miguel, Ne-Yo, Jermaine Dupri, Yung Miami, Chris Brown, T.I., and Big Sean have all had the honor of joining the king of R&B on stage for surprise performances, but perhaps the best part (aside from Usher's swoon-worthy vocals and impressive roller-skating dance moves, of course) has been Usher serenading his celebrity guests. Kim Kardashian, Issa Rae, Kimora Lee Simmons, Taraji P. Henson, Keke Palmer, Saweetie, and Winnie Harlow have all had the pleasure of being serenaded by Usher, but given that his residency doesn't end until December, there's no telling who's going to be next.
Also, his serenades aren't just limited to Vegas. Most recently, Usher sang his latest hit "Boyfriend" to Gabrielle Union in Paris, though he joked about not wanting any smoke from Dwyane Wade. "OK, let's stop. Let's not get carried away. This is Dwyane Wade, I ain't crazy. That man will knock my whole head off and then dunk it," Usher said, as seen in a video shared on his Instagram.
Ahead, check out videos from all the stars who've been serenaded by Usher at his Las Vegas residency — perhaps he'll even serenade a lucky fan when he performs at the Super Bowl halftime show in February 2024.
Keke Palmer
Palmer was living her best life when Usher sang "There Goes My Baby" to her at his concert over the Fourth of July weekend in 2023. However, her boyfriend, Darius Jackson, made headlines shortly after for publicly shaming her for the outfit she wore.
Usher recently responded to the buzz around Palmer attending his show in an interview with People published Aug. 4, saying it was "a pop moment" and "worth talking about." He added: "I think everybody's vision or a version of what they felt happened there just leads you back to just really having a good time in Las Vegas. And that's what I hope came out of it. Rather, it was a conversation of what was going on with us having fun in front of the audience or conversation about that song."
He continued, "Every night I'm thinking about how the world now is going to react to this moment that I'll have with whoever I'm choosing to sing to. But it was a pop moment, and it was fun to have at least conversation going and we just keep it light. I don't see anything negative happening in Las Vegas."
Usher also embraced the "Domestic Terrorist" nickname given to him by fans, joking, "The internet is crazy. You can't beat the internet."
Kim Kardashian
After missing out on seeing Usher for her 42nd birthday, Kardashian finally made it to his show in April. She documented the whole thing on her Instagram Stories, and in one video, Usher was shown serenading Kardashian with "My Boo."
Taraji P. Henson
The actor rang in her 52nd birthday by getting serenaded by Usher in September 2022.
Issa Rae
Usher sang "Superstar" to Rae in the audience before proceeding to bring her up on stage in October 2022.
Winnie Harlow
During Usher's July 8 show, the model quickly hopped onto her boyfriend, Kyle Kuzma's, lap as soon as Usher started singing to her.
Saweetie
On July 7, the rapper popped up at Usher's show, however, she let him do all the singing.
Kimora Lee Simmons
Twenty-five years after Simmons starred in Usher's "Nice & Slow" video, the pair reunited at his show in late April. At one point during their reunion, Usher even fed Simmons a chocolate-covered strawberry.