‘Forever’ man Keith Sweat swings back to Las Vegas

It’s about 115 degrees in Las Vegas when Keith Sweat calls.

“It just got cool,” I tell the stylish R&B singer.

“That’s right,” he says.

The master of the lovefest, who seems never to break a sweat (couldn’t resist), is headlining Friday and Saturday at The Pearl at the Palms.

The 62-year-old Sweat, who had a residency run at the Flamingo Showroom in 2017, is the rare performer to notch hits over four decades, with his 1987 triple-platinum album, “Make It Last Forever,” evolving as his theme. “I Want Her” was the breakout single.

Since then, Sweat has sold more than 17 million albums and singles. He was a trailblazer in new jack swing, the fusion of jazz, funk, R&B, hip-hop and dance pop that ruled the charts in the late ’80s and early ’90s.

Highlights from the man who has been known to ask his swooning fans, “Who can love you like me? Nobody.”

Johnny Kats: Your voice has held up really well over the years. Any pro tips on how you’ve maintained your vocal quality?

Keith Sweat: I just don’t drink or smoke. I’m taking care of my vocal cords. It’s a muscle. I don’t do anything to affect it or harm it. There is no secret to it. It’s like anything else on your body: Just take care of it.

You see these old clips of the Rat Pack and they’re on stage smoking and drinking, between songs, during songs.

Smoking is bad. It’s not a good thing. You have to protect what you have. That goes for vocally and your entire health. This is your livelihood, and you have to protect it.

You come from an era when it was almost a requirement that you put in time on stage to become a star. There was no cutting corners when you were a rising artist, right?

When I came into the game there was no Auto-Tune, none of that other stuff. You had to put the work in to be real.

In Las Vegas we’ve seen you at the Flamingo and at Lovers & Friends, a big wide-open festival. What’s your preference?

For people to show up who want to see Keith Sweat. (Laughs.) It doesn’t really matter. As long as I get on that stage and do what I need to do to get the fans excited, to feel energy. If the crowd is packed, if it is hyped and excited, then I’m doing what I’m supposed to do.

We talk about this in Vegas a lot: how to deliver a song beyond just singing the words. You see yourself as someone who really inhabits a song, right?

Most definitely. You need to make your crowd feel special, especially in a place like Vegas, where people really expect to be entertained. I look at myself and know that I can do the Vegas-type of show, without losing the kind of new jack swing element of what I had when I came out. I think people respect that about me. I can go in different directions when I am on stage and not just stick to a certain script. They’re definitely gonna be entertained, no matter what I’m doing.

How is the city perceived by you and by your contemporaries?

It is the top destination for everyone. Everybody knows about Vegas, the clubs, the parties, the entertainment. Still, in terms of where you go for entertainment, Vegas is the entertainment mecca.

Any talk of you coming back for a series? We’ve got a few new venues since you were last on the Strip.

People have asked me, but I haven’t really sat down to entertain what that show would be, or where. I’m not saying I wouldn’t do it, but I just haven’t thought about it at this point.

“Make It Last Forever” has become kind of your mantra, a theme, more than just a piece of music, hasn’t it?

I just happened to sing it into existence, “Make It Last Forever.” Now it mainly just says what it is for me. (Laughs.) But basically, I’m glad I came out with that title.

John Katsilometes’ column runs daily in the A section. His “PodKats!” podcast can be found at reviewjournal.com/podcasts. Contact him at jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @johnnykats on Twitter, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.