BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) — Lisa Lisa’s 40th Anniversary Tour will be making a stop in Bakersfield at Dignity Health Arena at 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 17. Take a moment to let that sink in.
It has been four decades since Lisa Lisa rose to fame as the lead singer of the New York-based band Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam. That was when her first release “I Wonder If I Take You Home” hit the charts.
Don’t feel alone if it is difficult to believe so much time has passed. Lisa Lisa (whose real name is Lisa Velez) admits that she has a hard time wrapping her head around it.
“I still feel like I’m 16 when I am on the stage, I really do,” Lisa Lisa says.
Anyone who doubts she has the energy of a 16-year-old can see proof when she takes the stage here. It will be a night of musical nostalgia as also performing will be Exposé, Color Me Badd, The Jets, Rob Base, Tag Team, J.J. Fad, and Candyman.
The secret to Lisa Lisa’s teenage energy is her continued passion for music.
“It’s all in my heart. It’s all for the love of the music and the entertainment. I love to sing. I will do almost anything to be on a stage and entertain my audience. That’s all it is,” Lisa Lisa says. “The energy from the audience, that’s all I need. That’s all I need to give them what they want. And I know exactly what they want. They want those classics.”
The New York-based band Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam became known for their crossover hits that blended freestyle, dance-pop, R&B, and ballads. The group’s hits include “Head to Toe”, “All Cried Out”, and “Can You Feel the Beat.”
The lineup of performers has changed throughout the tour but Lisa Lisa stresses that whoever takes the stage will be performing one hit after another. The job for Lisa Lisa and her band is to wrap up the show and she promises to perform every one of her songs that became a hit.
Long before she was linked with Cult Jam, Lisa Lisa was already singing her heart out as a member of her church choir in Manhattan’s Hell’s Kitchen. As the youngest of 10 children, she learned at an early age that a loud voice was needed if she wanted to be heard.
Her musical passions come from her parents who were members of an aparanda band when they met in Puerto Rico.
“They would go around and knock on people’s doors and get paid in food. Anything and everything that we did in my home was to music. When my mom was cleaning, cooking, helping with homework, anything, she played music,” Lisa Lisa says.
A lot of her history was revealed in the 2025 Lifetime biopic “Can You Feel the Beat: The Lisa Lisa Story.” The made-for-cable production gave Lisa Lisa an opportunity to pursue her other passion – acting – as she played her mother in the film.
Along with a long list of music videos – where Lisa Lisa now questions her fashion choices, especially a certain pink dress – she has appeared in such productions as “Law & Order” and “5th Burrough.” Lisa Lisa was heavily involved with musical theater when she was in high school. She points out that all the music videos she made helped with her acting because in each one she had to play a role while singing.
Her biggest acting role was in the Nickelodeon series “Tania.” She played the mother of a 15-year-old with dreams of becoming a singer and an actor. The 2001 series was on the air for only 26 episodes but that was enough to leave an impression.
Fans who show up for her show are those old enough to remember her debut, those who watch the cable series and young music lovers who have found her music.
“I watch the audience, and first of all, I want to thank them because of them, I’m still here. You see the audience with their children and their children’s children,” Lisa Lisa says. “I think some of that has to do with the fact that I did the series on Nickelodeon.
“I also just love the fact that today’s music, it’s all a remake or a retake. A bunch of samples. And that’s what hip-hop music is today. I thank God every day that they’ve been sampling me.”
Tickets for the anniversary tour starting at $153 are on sale now at AXS.com or at the theater box office.
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