On June 14, 2026, I finally managed to cross one huge item off of my bucket list- and that was to see Kenny G perform live in person. I also got to meet him face-to-face and talk to him briefly! All of this has honestly been a dream of mine since I was 10 years old, so for it to all finally happen once and for all is phenomenal. So, this is how it all went down...
I managed to nab a front row ticket to his show at the Rialto Theater in Tucson, Arizona and I also got my parents third row tickets (they actually wanted to sit closer to the back but I wouldn't let them). Together, we made a trip out of it by flying out to Arizona and then staying in Tucson for a couple of nights. When concert day came, I had butterflies in my stomach all day. As I got ready in our hotel room, I felt like I was getting ready for a first date or something- I took a shower, got dressed, put on all my makeup, and tried to keep my expectations low for the evening since I have a tendency to play out lots of “what-if” scenarios in my head and end up being disappointed in the end. (Spoiler alert: It was not a disappointing night at all)! Along with a lilac-colored dress and off-white sandals, I partially put my hair up in a saxophone clip that a friend of mine recommended to me, so I was ready for a “saxy” night out (okay, enough of those puns for now)!
My parents and I then headed to the Rialto Theater in Downtown Tucson, parked at the public garage nearby and made the less-than-five-minute walk to the theater. I should also mention that earlier that day, we had lunch at The Cup Café within Hotel Congress across the street just so I could take a picture of the marquee above the theater entrance.
Now with the sun beginning to set, there was a long-ish line of people waiting to get in to the theater, though by the time my parents and I got to the end of the line, it had just begun to move. Just outside of the doors, there was a security checkpoint where I had to put my phone and purse into a bin to be inspected and then I walked through a scanner. The scanner didn’t pick up anything, but I was questioned about one “suspicious-looking” item in my purse- an approximately six-by-two-inch long black box that I guess admittedly looked like a little coffin or perhaps even a small gun box. It was neither of those, though; rather, it was a miniature soprano saxophone “toy” with other miniature accessories that I intended to give as sort of a gag gift to Kenny:
Everything down to the bad English and misspellings are intentional!
I told them that it was a “gift for Kenny G” and that they were welcome to take it out and open it but instead they told me to go inside and hand it over to a security team member and “they would take care of it.” Thus, as soon as I got inside, that’s what I did. In retrospect, since they hadn’t confiscated it right then, I probably should’ve held onto it and waited but I guess I’m too much of a rule-follower, in general. When I handed it to the security member inside, I explained to them again what it was and they told me to stand and wait while they radio-ed someone else and relayed the information. Then, a few minutes went by and another member of security came from within to take the item from me and said, “There are no guarantees that we will be able to get this to him, but we will try.” I just said, “That’s fine,” and handed it over. Honestly, I really didn’t care either way, and I was actually glad that I had handed it over then because as I discovered later at the actual meet-and-greet event, there was even less chance that I could’ve given it to him or even that it would’ve been well-received then.
With that important thing out of the way, I could now take in the fullness of the pre-show festivities and indulge at the merchandise tables. They had a Kenny G brand soprano saxophone on display at one of the tables and I was so tempted to just touch it and even pick it up and ask if I could play it, but I didn’t bother. They likely didn’t have any reeds on hand, anyway. I did buy a bunch of raffle tickets to win a saxophone and I also bought a large photo of Kenny G which I intended to have him autograph later. The only other items they had for sale were some CDs and vinyls but I did not get those because I already had the exact ones they had. I suppose it would’ve been cool to get one of them autographed but I knew I had to be strategic; I figured I could only get one item autographed (which ended up being the case) plus I did happen to bring one very sentimental item with me in my purse that thankfully did not get questioned or confiscated. It was the booklet for my original Breathless CD album.
Everything original.
Tonight, I was going to try to get it autographed, either in lieu of the photo or perhaps with my mom or dad doing it. My mom wanted to hold on to the photo during the concert so I let her. She absolutely cracked me up all night because in the days and weeks leading up to tonight, she swore up and down that she didn’t care to see Kenny G at all but all of a sudden tonight, she turned into a fangirl. She ended up holding the photo up all night long like a banner, also using it at times to shield her eyes from the bright lights.
At that point, there was nothing left to do except go ahead and head to our seats in the auditorium. It was so dark in there that nobody could see the seat numbers so security had to escort everybody to their seats. I let someone escort me to mine even though I knew exactly where it was which was at the very front on the right side and right next to the middle aisle. When I sat down, I just marveled at how close to the action I really was going to be. The stage itself was above eye-level so I knew that my neck was going to be straining a little as I watched the show but I pretty much expected that. Currently, there was a huge projection screen hanging down above it cycling through ads for upcoming shows. As more people began streaming in and getting to their seats, I watched as the stage slowly came to life though it was still bathed in mostly darkness. I watched as a tech brought in a tenor saxophone and set it down on the piano and that made the excitement within me really start to well up. I watched as some fog got blown in from the sides of the stage and then when the huge projection screen started going up, I really started to get excited. Then at one point, the most jarring and calming event at the same time- Kenny G, himself, walked up to the front of the stage to talk about the raffle. It was jarring because he just came on totally unannounced and it didn’t quite hit me until he started talking that he was standing right there above me. I was already expecting him to do something like this yet I still was unprepared. But it was also calming because he injected a lot of humor into the situation, starting off by gently roasting the theater staff about the dressing rooms and the house lights because he couldn’t see any of us initially, though the latter was corrected when bright lights above the stage suddenly came on and nearly blinded us all. He then went on to say that it was basically already showtime but that people were still slow to come in on time and then he explained the whole raffle business including making mildly crass puns about the size of the saxophone he was holding among other things. For the uninitiated, the winner of the raffle would basically win a Kenny G brand saxophone signed by him and they would also be brought up onto the stage and serenaded to directly. Of course I knew in my heart that winning such a raffle would be such a dream come true, but I didn’t set my hopes high. I don’t enter competitions often and when I do, I have never won.
My first time seeing Kenny G in the flesh.
He then made a couple of more comments and disappeared. After that, many people began swarming the staff member standing in front of me to buy last-minute raffle tickets so that was fun to watch. After they had all cleared out, I then watched as a couple of techs wheeled out some large black boxes up the middle aisle and placed it a few rows behind me and that made the excitement well up even more because I knew that those were the boxes that Kenny would soon stand on to kick off the show. Soon enough, exactly that happened. First, I heard the opening keyboard notes for “Loving You,” and then the lights came on and this time shone on the box setup in the middle of the aisle and Kenny was there with his soprano saxophone. And everyone went respectfully nuts as he began playing the song. I immediately began recording with my phone so I couldn’t go quite nuts yet though I also put my phone down enough times throughout the show to thoroughly enjoy it and be in the moment.
After that song, he began an improvised solo and segued right into “Silhouette.” In the middle of it, he held a high B for well over a minute. Even though I know exactly how he does this I am still amazed and impressed every time. I tried to learn the circular breathing technique to play a didgeridoo once in high school but it didn’t work out. Perhaps someday I will focus on learning this technique once and for all though I know it’s going to be far from easy. As I watched him hold this note for a while, he waved and did other silly gestures like wipe sweat off of his brow and all the while made people smile, myself included. He then carefully descended from the box platform and began giving fist bumps to people. He then made his way down the aisle towards the stage and when I saw him give a fist bump to the guy two rows behind me I quickly stuck my hand up in a whim and that was when he gave me a fist bump, too, and I just screamed inside like a little girl. He then went up onto the stage and finished out the song. For the rest of the night, my memory is hazy about the exact setlist and order so I can’t quite give a song-by-song play anymore from now on. It was more about specific moments remembered out of order of when they actually happened but remembering them individually, nonetheless. I remember being hyper-focused on his fingers as he played rather than his face or anything else, though of course I looked at his face every now and then. That’s where the eyes naturally gravitate. All saxophonists, nay all musicians, tend to have funny faces when they play and I’m sure I do, too. Kenny did, too. When in that hyper-focus/concentration mode, it tends to make our faces strain a little though as woodwind players, they tell you to never excessively tighten up your mouth or bite down. I noticed Kenny looking at people, too, again myself included and I couldn’t help but squeal inside every time I saw his eyes on me. Of course I can’t always know what he’s thinking or even know if he actually “sees” the person he’s looking at at any given time. Whenever I’m playing the sax and deeply concentrating, I could very well be looking at someone’s face and not even register what I’m looking at and forget it if they’re trying to get my attention or say something to me. Anyway, just thought I’d mention that completely unnecessary sidenote. Anyways, some special moments that I particularly remember from the show, itself, was hearing classics like “G-Bop,” “Forever In Love,” and “Songbird.” By far the sexiest moment of the night for me, though, was watching and hearing him debut his tenor saxophone for the night with the song, “Desafinado” (originally recorded by Stan Getz). The way he held it and introduced it and of course the way he played it was delicious to say the least. And best of all, his “home” position on the stage which appeared to be right in front of and above me made it appear as if he were playing just for me much of the time. Wishful thinking or not, I had the feeling of being directly serenaded to for several measures which just gave me chills and no other song he played that night had me feeling like this. Experiencing this moment was the pinnacle of the night for me and to be honest, made it so that I wasn’t bothered at all when the raffle winner was announced and it wasn’t me. The winner was a lady who brought another lady friend onto the stage with her whom, according to Kenny, was a friend of her husband and so they got to enjoy being directly serenaded to by Kenny. I feel terrible about this but for the life of me I can’t remember what song he played for them though I’m sure it’ll come to me later. They both looked genuinely stoked and thoroughly enjoyed the moment and that’s what matters.
Crap, I realized I never took a pic of the raffle winners! Here's another pic of Kenny G instead.
Kenny also told stories throughout the night, including showing off his soprano saxophone and asking the audience, “Do you know what this is?” I immediately shouted out “soprano saxophone” but I think he wanted to get a bunch of wrong answers first before explaining since it really is funnier that way. Of course he did finally explain it and also said that he had it since high school and that it was his “longest relationship.” I guess his friend and former mentor, James Gardiner, knew something was up when he once said of him in high school that his “only girlfriend” was his sax, ha. Another thing that he made sure his audience knew about was that he was going to be out in the lobby at the merchandise table right after the show to sign stuff and that he would only be signing items that people actually bought at the table. This was significant because then this threw into question how I was going to get my “Breathless” CD booklet signed but I figured I would worry about that later. He then played some more songs and ended the night with a cadenza, “Songbird,” and finally, “My Heart Will Go On.” All in all, I think the show lasted about two hours but it felt like it went by so fast.
Photo taken by my dad.
Now it was time to head on out for the official meet-and-greet. I was incredibly nervous and excited at the same time though I made sure I was prepared with things to say to and ask him and of course have an item ready for him to sign. I got the photo that I had bought at the table earlier back from my mom and then I gave her my “Breathless” CD booklet since she didn’t have anything else. When it came to bending or breaking house rules, I knew I could count on her. Not only is she absolutely fearless and practically shameless, but for better or worse, she has both accidentally and purposefully used her poor English to her advantage (she’s Korean). In fact I remember that I kept telling her to go ahead and talk to Kenny and tell him that fact because I knew that he would absolutely attempt to speak to her in Korean, though she didn’t end up doing it in the end...oh, well. My dad didn’t want to participate in the meet-and-greet and just happily hung out in the lobby near the main event the whole time, discreetly filming and taking pictures and conversing with other random people. My mom and I tried to be among the first ones in the line, but a line was already forming by the table (Kenny wasn’t there yet) and it ended up snaking up the stairs to the balcony and so she and I started lining up there, being second to last. Behind me was a younger couple and in front of me was an older lady wearing a T-shirt with Kenny’s face on it and I complimented her on the shirt and talked to both her and the couple behind us a little bit. We thought that we were going to be waiting up there for quite a while, but soon the line started to move and it started to move fast. It didn’t really dawn on me until later that the fast rate at which it moved was actually a bad sign because it meant that people were being rushed through the meet-and-greet like crazy, but I soon found that out on my own, anyway. As I talked with the people immediately in front of and behind me, what struck me most about our conversations is that they were mainly concerned about getting their items signed and really nothing else. I even remember asking the question, “What do you want to say to Kenny?” and all of them responded that they didn’t really know. I actually felt like I was in the opposite situation…talking to Kenny was of utmost importance and getting my stuff signed was secondary. I mean, I had never even met him face-to-face before and these other people had apparently, so then I kind of understood their view.
Soon before I knew it, we were in the lobby and I saw Kenny. He was behind the table busily greeting the people being ushered through and signing their items and then I was interrupted by one of the staffers asking if I had an item to sign. I said yes and initially, she took me out of the line but then threw me back in for some odd reason. We were just three people away from Kenny now and then the same staffer took mine and about three or four other people’s phones to get ready to take our photos with him. The lady with the Kenny G shirt, another lady in front of her, and my mom got confused as being all together which nearly caused “Kenny G shirt” lady to miss her photo-op and not only that, the staffer with all of our phones couldn’t figure out which belonged to which and was asking them and showing the phones to them and I remember thinking, Oh God, I had better not lose my phone here of all places. As they were all arguing and talking confusedly and holding up the line, Kenny started pounding his fists onto the table and urged, “Come onnn!” I must’ve let out an involuntarily laugh right then because he then turned and looked right at me standing a few feet away still, half-grinned and half-grimaced and spoke very cheerfully, “Hi!” All I could do was say “hi” back but I was now reeling. That was his very first word to me. But the chaos was far from over yet. Somehow, my mom had disappeared at this point (I later learned that somehow in that chaos, she apparently got my “Breathless” booklet signed and her very own photo with him which I can’t fathom how that even happened in that short span of time), and “Kenny G shirt” lady finally got her moment alone with Kenny and a photo (one of which ended up on my phone). Now, it was finally my turn. As I walked up to him, the first thing he did was point to me and ask, “Were you in the front row?” and I answered enthusiastically, “Yes!” Then, after setting my photo down on the table in front of him I launched into my spiel about how nice it was to meet him finally and that it was my very first show and that I had a great (emphasis on “great”) time. His response? “Oh. Oh! Thank you- aren’t you nice! You had a great spot.” to which I again enthusiastically agreed and then I also told him how he “inspired me to go home and practice my sax more.” At this point my mom decided to crash our party and came up to us which caused him to question, “Is she with you?” and of course I answered, “Yes, she’s my mom.” I really could’ve died right then, but I think Kenny found it quite humorous or at least I hope so. Of course she had already gotten her item signed and photo taken (my “Breathless” booklet), but now with the photo I had with me signed, the staffer who was taking pictures was signaling to Kenny to hurry up and have us turn around for the photo, so then he relayed that to us. My mom tried to run away to leave us alone for the photo so now I have a nice picture of me and Kenny and my mom half out of frame to cherish for the rest of my life…lucky me. With her permission and also sincerest apologies, she has allowed me to crop her out of the photo whenever I show it to my friends.
And that my friends is the story of the night I finally saw and met my musical hero, Kenny G. I think I can die happy now. Oh, and here's a pic of "Breathless" again, this time signed!
I will never ever ever ever part with this. Ever!