Michelle Obama, kids attend Beyoncé gig

Atlantic City - Michelle Obama was with the single ladies this weekend, joining 5 500 fans at a Beyoncé concert in Atlantic City.

The first lady was with daughters Sasha and Malia at Revel Resorts, where Beyoncé performed two dozen songs on Saturday. Obama's husband, President Barack Obama, did not attend.

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie was among the sell-out crowd packed into Revel's Ovation Hall.

Michelle Obama and the girls appeared excited throughout the concert, cheering Beyoncé on. The daughters even sang along to the old school-sounding jam Love on Top.

Obama recently told People magazine that if she could be anyone else, it would be Beyoncé. And she came close, at least in how she was received by the audience: The first lady got a roaring cheer that matched Beyoncé's as she made her way to her seat in a shiny green dress. Some fans took photos while others screamed her name. One yelled, "This is history!

Tributes

Beyoncé opened the night with the upbeat End of Time, wearing a glimmering silver outfit and hot pink shoes that matched her nails. She followed that with more up-tempo hits like Crazy In Love, Get Me Bodied and Party.

During the slower grooves, Beyoncé brought on the emotion. She held back tears during a rousing rendition of Resentment and sat on top of a piano when belting the love song 1+1.

The multiplatinum singer's Atlantic City concerts are her first since giving birth in January to daughter Blue Ivy.

"Y'all don't know how hard I had to work," Beyoncé told the crowd. "I had to lose 27kg. They had me on the treadmill, eating lettuce."

Beyoncé paid tributes to late singers throughout the night, singing a verse of Whitney Houston's I Will Always Love You and giving Donna Summer a shout-out when performing Naughty Girl, which samples Summer's hit Love to Love You Baby. She also performed a cover of Lauryn Hill's Ex-Factor and infused the Goo Goo Dolls' Iris when she sang If I Were a Boy.

Beyoncé was backed by her all-female band and numerous dancers - including some men.