NEW ORLEANS (WGNO)— Grammy, Emmy, and twice Tony Award-winning singer, composer, director, author, actor, and playwright Billy Porter is coming to New Orleans for his “Black Mona Lisa Tour: Volume 1” extravaganza show at the Saenger Theater.

Fans can expect a full band, backed by a video installation, with Billy Porter telling his life story through song. The show will feature his chart-topping hits, “Love Is On the Way,” and “Love Yourself. Porter’s new single is “Baby Was a Dancer”, and was released on March 24th on Republic Records.

WGNO’s Kenny Lopez interviewed Billy Porter and talked with him about his concert tour and his show-stopping award-winning role in “Kinky Boots.”

When talking to Lopez about his tour, Porter said, “The name ‘Black Mona Lisa’ fell from the sky, and that’s what I love about it. The Mona Lisa is classic, past, present, and future. She has always been and will always be relevant, and that’s who I am.”

When talking about his new show, “It is a celebration of love, life, hope, joy, and self-empowerment, and peace. All things we need now after wallowing in collective trauma.”

Porter went on to say, “I hope this concert will be a big bear hug. We are better together. Love always wins and I want to do so that’s what I’m doing with this music.”

When asked about ‘Kinky Boots’ on Broadway he said, “The greatest gift I got from Kinky Boots was the concept of forgiveness and how important forgiveness is, not only for the person being forgiven but more importantly for the person doing the forgiving. There’s a healing inside of forgiveness that is very, very powerful.”

Billy Porter is no stranger to New Orleans. He is the New Orleans host for Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve.

“It is a wonderful way to bring in the New Year, sharing community, the world-ushering a new year is really special,” he said.

“The Black Mona Lisa Tour: Volume 1” will be at the Saenger on May 14th. Tickets are available.

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