A few flashes of feeling

In the old days, hit singles created hit albums because buying an album was the only way to hear more from someone who hooked you on the radio. But with technology now providing so many other ways to sample a performer’s music, making that commitment seems quaintly old-fashioned.

The R&B; singers and rappers on the “School’s Out” tour, which stopped at the Gibson Amphitheatre on Friday, have had some big radio songs, but none has led to major album sales.

One casualty of this process is the relationship between listener and artist fostered by the album-owning experience.

With musicians easily checked out and discarded, pop music has rarely seemed so disposable.

That might be one reason for the sparse attendance at Friday’s showcase of five second-tier and/or emerging performers, which appeared to draw less than half a house to the 6,000-capacity Gibson.

Even so, it was an opportunity for T-Pain, Dem Franchize Boyz and company to make an impression and show what they’ve got.

But the evening of hard rap and sub-Usher singing yielded few sparks or revelations.

T-Pain might have the most momentum at the moment, but the Floridian didn’t make “I’m N Love (Wit a Stripper)” the fun centerpiece it could have been. In fact, he seemed more comfortable blending in with his two sidemen on high energy hip-hop dancing than he did taking the spotlight. When he sat at the piano for the ballad “Studio Luv,” he seemed serious and soulful.

Trey Songz has no problem with the spotlight. The handsome young Virginian was so impressed by his effect on “the ladies” that his set tipped into narcissism, all bedroom ballads and slow removal (and tearing up of) his shirt. He has a steely, powerful voice, and no ideas about what to do with it onstage.

The 2 1/2 -hour concert was bookended by rap crews, the ballad-happy New Ridaz and the irresistibly energetic Dem Franchize Boyz, the Atlanta outfit that’s popularized blinding white T-shirts and the party sound known as “snap music.”

As much fun as they were in their show-closing set, the emotional highlight came from the least likely source.

Ray J, who’s had a modest musical career alongside his acting and TV hosting endeavors, was wrapping up his set when he started speaking passionately about his independent stance as an artist and the importance of God, friends and family.

It wasn’t oratory of the highest order, but his flash of feeling was easily the most genuine and touching moment of the night. And it wasn’t something you’ll find on a streaming audio site.