#HipHop

All the Streets are Silent: Convergence of Hip Hop & Skateboarding w/ Jeremy Elkin & Dana Brown

NYC – It’s Tribeca Film Festival 2021 time & we are covering a ton of films this year.
First up is All the Streets are Silent: Convergence of Hip Hop & Skateboarding (1987-1997) w/ Director Jeremy Elkin & Producer Dana Brown.
A fascinating look at when Lower Manhattan was once home to the thriving subcultures of skateboarding and hip-hop. Their convergence would give rise to modern street style. Eli Gesner, founder of skateboard gear and fashion brand Zoo York, narrates the film with an original score from Large Professor.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 49:26 — 40.1MB)

Classic Hip-Hop as The Sugar Hill Gang Celebrates 40 Years, Wu-Tang Return to the 36 Chambers & more

The Sugar Hill Gang Celebrates 40 Years of Hip-Hop w/ The Furious Five & More – August 30th – Gas Monkey Live – Dallas, TX

This will take a bit of unpacking: As a life-long fan & student of Hip-Hop, how could I resist the originators right? I actually saw The SugarHill Gang in Austin at SXSW almost 20 years ago in the most unsuspecting of circumstances (that also involved a funny story regarding Damon Albarn & an impatient bartender but that’s a tale for another time).

Sugarhill Gang is celebrating the 40th anniversary of their iconic hit ‘Rapper’s Delight’ which sold over eight million copies since it came out in 1979. I had to be here for this right? But I wasn’t sure what time they were going on & I’m not 19 anymore so I don’t have the time (or the patience) to get there 3 hours before they go on. I gotta get in & get out & that’s what I planned to do on this night but this venue often doesn’t make the kind of info necessary to do such things available as often that would be ideal. So I arrive, feeling like I was way too early, & that was only confirmed by the nice girl at the Will Call window (who was kind enough to let me photograph the set times:)

Yup I was about 90 mins early – But man I had a good parking spot and had already eaten so I thought, “Ill just chill here in the car, catch up on messages” etc. Weren’t very many cars in the parking lot so I was sure I wasn’t missing anything inside. Suddenly my attention is forced to notice the blaring siren of an ambulance pulling into the parking lot and rounding the back of the venue. I’m not jaded to ignore a tragedy so trust me when I say that it didn’t appear my attention to it was needed 30 secs after it was given. In a flash, the 90 mins had ended & the ambulance seemed to be long gone as well, when I loaded my camera & headed inside.

Once in, it was deafening how empty the place was, easily less than a 100 people in a venue that can hold 3,000. I was standing there with appeared to be the only other photographer when I struck up a conversation with him. I’m as social as they come but normally the conversations I’m forced to have with other photographers at live events is excruciating. It parallels schoolyard one-upmanships with (usually) men I wouldn’t let in my house, so it was refreshing the meet this dude whose Instagram handle is BurphDate Lasagna which as I learned is a tribute of sort to his mother who no matter how poor or old, would always make lasagna for her children on her birthday. If that doesn’t sound heart wrenching beautiful a) Check your pulse & b) You should hear him tell it.

So rare to connect with anybody these days but especially a complete stranger & for whatever reason we just really bonded and small talk led to real & meaningful conversations & that’s how I was able to get to hear that story that touched me so much I couldn’t wait to write about it & share it with my own family. Cheers to you my friend.

Now as much as I was enjoying chatting with BL, it did start to occur to me that man, quite a bit of time has passed & what the hell was going on???
That’s when BL informed me that he was in fact there as a hired videographer for the previous opener & that ambulance I had heard? Well it was for one of those guys who sadly had somehow broken their freaking leg during their set (Note to self: Never miss Cure For Paranoia ever again). I asked BL if he was here when it happened & he said no as he also had just arrived.

Finally after another large chunk of time passes, the show finally begins:

The Sugarhill Gang is made up of original members Wonder Mike (Michael Wright) & Master Gee (Guy O’Brien) as sadly Big Bank Hank (Henry Jackson) passed away at age 57 in 2014 due to complications from cancer.

Now I was a bit confused as it was supposed to be The Furious Five (minus leader GrandMaster Flash) but now we went straight to Sugarhill so I was thinking that with all the ambulance shenanigans that somehow the FF were not gonna get to play due to time constraints.  However I quickly learned (much to my delight) that to mark the 40th anniversary along with fellow Hip Hop architects Grandmaster Melle Mel and Scorpio of The Furious 5, they have joined forces to form a supergroup. This is a hugely significant event in Hip Hop culture, these two groups put the genre on the map.

Grandmaster Melle Mel and Scorpio, along with fellow MCs The Creole Kidd, Keith Cowboy, and Rahiem, have created some of the genre’s most iconic songs, including platinum selling classic ‘The Message’, the first Hip Hop group to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Anti-drug song ‘White Lines (Don’t Do It) was covered by mega new wave band Duran Duran in 1995 & hits like ‘Beat Street’ and ‘Step Off’ have become genre defining classics.

Ok great, but how was THIS show? – The shame of my lack of trust in their abilities to wow us poured over me within the first ten seconds of their set, they KILLED. From the get-go the SHG members Master Gee and Hen Dogg were in high intensity at its best, bringing no cheesy clichés, just pure slick values. Even Hen Dogg pulled off his top hat, shades, tracksuit and cane get-up. Their coolness was paired beautifully with their reflective jokes on their age and the journey they’ve been on to get to the now.

Melle Mel didn’t miss the chance to spread a positive message either, commenting on the quality and meaningfulness of their lyrics: “We ain’t here to talk about drugs and how many people we’ve shot.” Nor did he neglect his opportunity to show off his muscular physique, which was humbling as this dude is much better shape than I & he’s could easily be my dad haha

Setlist:

8th Wonder
It’s Nasty (Genius of Love)
Ain’t Nothin’ But A Party
Livin’ in the Fast Lane

Furious Five Set:

Freedom
Beat Street Breakown
King of The Streets
Superappin’
White Lines (Don’t Don’t Do It)
The Message

Encore: 

Jump Around / Apache
Rapper’s Delight

In true hip-hop style, to prove that 40 years later, their music is just as vital and worthy as it was back then, stamping out any doubts that legendary performers could live on in such an honest, sparkling, smooth form.

Wu-Tang Clan: Return To 36 Chambers – October 4th – The Bomb Factory – Dallas, TX

It is no broad boast to call “Enter the Wu (36 Chambers)” — the first album from the Staten Island hip-hop collective Wu-Tang Clan — one of the most powerful and influential debuts of the last century.

From its incendiary 1993 start, Wu-Tang Clan had an auteur’s cinematic touch (credit producer and film fan RZA) and an aggressive rawness that, when mixed with the rap ensemble’s superhero-inspired takes on martial-arts movies and the art of war, was unique.

Add to that a street vibe that miles away from the rap that was popular at the time  — which ranged from the jazzy optimism of De La Soul and Digable Planets to Dr. Dre and Snoop’s smooth West Coast G-funk — and Wu-Tang Clan was, as they often say, nothing to f— with. And it was that hard-edged debut that Wu-Tang Clan was celebrating for the 25th anniversary of that landmark album.

Here, original Wu members RZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, Master Killa, GZA and U-God, with auxiliary members Cappadonna & DJ Mathematics performed a happily sloppy but no less incisive version of their debut album, along with multiple other group and solo tracks.

Amazingly they were all here! haha I’ve seen Wu Tang shows in the past were their was always at least one missing (& other cases where far more than one).
Ol’ Dirty Bastard was represented onstage by his son named, naturally enough, Young Dirty Bastard who aptly took on tracks that featured his dad, such as “Shimmy Shimmy Ya” and “Got Your Money.” YDB’s growling raps and lurching stage moves proved that the Wu fruit had not fallen far from the tree.

The group members staggered their stage entrances, starting with a throbbing, menacing “Bring da Ruckus.” By their third track, however — “Clan In Da Front” bumped up against “Wu-Tang 7th Chamber” — the ensemble was in full flower and full flow. With its layered raps, cackles, barks and shouts of “Wu!,” their a chorus of chaos nestled against slamming stammering beats. To go with its punkish verbal energy, the Wu’s staging was a fast mess of constant motion, with each man bouncing before or behind the other.  Often times RZA or any other member would come to the front of the stage & start dousing the crowd with champagne. They were definitely ready to party. And so was the crowd as this place was packed so far to the gills that at times not only was it uncomfortable but even perhaps unsafe.

Method and Raekwon were the most vocally commanding members of the group at this show, with RZA and Ghostface the most subdued. But still, audiences members could easily single out the nuances of each man’s voice during their turns or verses at the mic. Cappadonna’s hyper-quick verse during Ghostface’s “Winter Warz” and the flighty fight songs between Masta Killa and Ghost — such as “Duel of the Iron Mic” and “4th Chamber” — allowed each actor a dramatic, angry soliloquy.

Still, a united Wu-Tang Clan is always better than its separate parts — in fact, what truly came through during this set is that Wu-Tang is as much a family as it is a group.

“How often do you get the full Wu-Tang together?” asked Method Man.

Not enough.

Setlist:

36 Chambers Set:

Bring da Ruckus
Shame on a Nigga
Clan in da Front
7th Chamber
Can It Be All So Simple
Da Mystery of Chessboxin’
Wu-Tang Clan Ain’t Nuthing ta F’ Wit
C.R.E.A.M.
Method Man
Protect Ya Neck
Tearz
7th Chamber Part II
Conclusion

Run (Cappadonna song)
Reunited
Severe Punishment
Duel of the Iron Mic (GZA/Genius)
Ice Cream (Raekwon song)
4th Chamber (GZA/Genius song)

ODB Tribute

Shimmy Shimmy Ya
Got Your Money
Brooklyn Zoo

Encore:

Gravel Pit
Triumph
C.R.E.A.M (reprise)

Photos –

Roy Turner

MC Hammer’s Summer House Party w/ Kid N Play, Sir MixAlot & more (Aug 2019)

It’s a Summer House Party!!

MC Hammer’s House Party w/ Kid N Play, Sir Mix Alot & more – August 2nd – Toyota Music Factory – Irving, TX

Have you ever wanted to dance to “U Can’t Touch This,” “Baby Got Back,” “Bust a Move,” Just a Friend,” “Funky Cold Medina” and “Me So Horny” all in one evening?

Me too but this will take some unpacking:
When I first saw this flyer I thought “Oh snap, that could become a reality and be really fun” Not to mention it was the perfect time of year for an outdoor Summertime old school Hip-Hop Party. What I didn’t notice & (& totally should have is the bottom fine print where it says Lineups Vary By City.
MC Hammer is obviously playing every night of the tour, but the other artists vary from show to show. From the time I heard about the show until the literally the day before the gig I wasn’t aware of this bit of information. It wasn’t until the PR people sent me the iteniarary that I realized we weren’t getting even remotely the acts that I had been anticipating. My questions then turned to: “Where is Biz, Rob Base, En Vogue, Doug E. & so many of the others?”. Now I know with that many acts not all could make the tour every night but dang, when I saw that the lineup was gonna be this:

The Funky Bunch
2 Live Crew
Kid N Play
Sisque (& Dru Hill)
Sir Mix Alot
MC Hammer

Especially when I heard that the night before in Houston, Doug E, Rob & Tone Loc were on the bill. Then my immediate next question was: What kind of show the Funky Bunch can put together without Mark “Marky Mark” Wahlberg? 

We only caught the end of their set but it didn’t appear that we missed much.
Next up was 2 Live Crew, who I was eagerly anticipating as I LOVED their 1989 controversial As Nasty as They Wanna Be, that’s celebrating it’s 30 year Anniversary (that we discuss in length over at TrickyKid Radio for our All Thing 1989 series that you can check out here).

Setlist:

Move Somethin’
Pop That Pussy
Me So Horny
We Want Some Pussy
Hoochie Mama
Savage
If You Believe in Having Sex

The second they were onstage, more questions than answers were coming – Where are the members of this group? No Luke, no Brother Marquis & no Fresh Kid Ice, that we didn’t know had passed away until Mixx announced it from the stage (RIP). So Mixx, who started the group I guess owns the rights and can tour under that name but this wasn’t the 2 Live Crew we were excited to see.

The obvious predecessor to this show is the ongoing I Love The 90’s tour, spearheaded most nights by Salt N Pepa. But while that tour was super fun & also featured Tone Loc, Coolio and Young MC, it was also a smoothly run production whereas this show felt like from the beginning something that reeks of amateur hour in it’s execution & these several missteps to start the show only cemented that vibe. Next up was another I Love the 90’s alumni Kid N Play who in my opinion stole that show when we saw it and this one:

Since these guys started so young, they still look, walk, talk & rap like the Kid N Play you remember. Also some campy skit comedy thrown in for good measure and they are the reason to come to the show in the first place. A total blast that I will see as long as they tour.

Sisqo & Dru Hill

Now this was a surprise for many & this was the only date they were on the tour. But again the surprise wasn’t intentional, the powers that be somehow didn’t mention that this was gonna be a Dru Hill reunion one night only style that if your a fan of this, this was a big deal. I had no idea who they were, barely remember Sisqo’s novelty hit Thong Song celebrating it’s 20 anniversary this year. But in terms of production, this was the best quality of the evening. This reunion features two of it’s newest members in anticipation of the forthcoming 2Nd Coming Lp.

Sir Mix Alot

Now this was interesting, as I like Sir Mix Alot & beyond HIS novelty hit Baby Got Back from waaaay back in 1992 that he’s clearly sick of performing & being known for. I first heard his music in 8th Grade when couple of “edgy” kids had his debut Swass that featured this minor hit Posse on Broadway. I’d never seen Mixalot and wanted to but have to say this: I love this dude but he always seems a little grumpy and onstage was no different. Call it old age or whatever but at times he seemed downright resentful for being there and just overall short tempered. And not just here, all the interviews I see, it just doesn’t seem like he’s having any fun at all, which in turn, makes it hard for the audience to enjoy something he refuses to sell.
For instance: When the inevitable “let’s get some ladies from the crowd portion” rolled around, one started to attempt to dance with him and the crowd popped at her ambition only to sigh when he literally walked around her to get away from her. He scolded this one girl ON THE MIC for trying to get a pic with him etc.

Even when he tried to sound upbeat it still sounded cranky: At the beginning of the aformentioned Posse, he said “Ya’ll know this one? You should, your the one’s who blew it up” and later on 1996’s Jump On It he bellowed “Now this whole damn song is about Texas”. Cheer up dude.

The tour, which is being billed as Hammer’s first major tour since 1991 but fans in this area know that earlier this year he did a one off at Lava Cantina in a suburb North of Dallas which was in fact his first appearance in these parts since the early 90s.
The interesting there here is there is good & then their is baffling:

First the good:

Despite it being close to 30 freaking years later, he still for the most part looks & moves like Hammer & can perform those songs to great satisfaction.

The Baffling:

The pacing didn’t seem like it really had any rhyme or reason – like you just happened to be at a Burrell Family Reunion and all the kids begged Uncle Hammer to get up & do his thing.
Family: Didn’t this dude go bankrupt the first time around for being overly generous by giving like everyone he ever knew a job? Which is commendable and I’m that type of dude too, I would totally go broke supporting the ones I love & not give a shit. But he clearly hasn’t learned his lesson in business terms as while it may be cool to have a few dancers with him, he had like two freaking dozen!! And you got the impression that they were all related to him.

Ok, it’s a family affair so what’s wrong with that? Nothing persay, but the execution of this show, again felt like it was unplanned but without the spark of spontaneity. Like you can’t say it a refreshing backyard party free of pretense and that makes it cool, because he started the show throwing out roses to select females. It just felt like a mess.

And it only got messier: Remember above when I mentioned Mixalot doing the “let’s get some ladies onstage” bit?
At one point towards the end his handlers allowed a dangerous amount of people onstage, for this cavernous place that was way undersold to have turned a profit, it felt like there were more people onstage than off of it. We were in like the first 5 rows and there were so many bodies onstage that I looked over at my wife and said “Where the hell is Hammer??” We could hear him but he was buried in this sea of people unable to move let alone dance.

Hey Hammer, you wanna hire a bunch of people, get a choreographer and a stage manager!

Setlist:

Let’s Get It Started
Pumps and a Bump
Have You Seen Her
Pray
They Put Me in the Mix
Curious
Here We Go Again
Too Legit to Quit

Encore: 

U Can’t Touch This
I’m MC Hammer
Turn This Mutha Out

Photos –

Roy Turner
Reggie Edwards
Nicolai Puc
Ward 1 Design

 

MC Hammer – November 2nd 2018 – Lava Cantina – The Colony, TX

Let me say this: Just the rarity of this show made it enjoyable for starters. Secondly to see one of the biggest commercial acts of the past 30 years in such an intimate venue (without it being sad or depressing) was an equal +.
But the real positive was that simply the performance was DOPE – Hammer & his troupe came out swinging for the fences & never let up for a solid hour.

Despite my research I can’t find anything that would suggest that this isn’t his first performance of any kind in these parts in over a quarter-century.
That’s gotta be wrong right? If you can prove otherwise, drop us a line. Here’s the thing with Hammer (for me) – As a student of Hip-Hop his brand to me might as well be Coca-Cola right? But his success came into my life at a time (middle school) when as an adult you become nostalgic for everything that came out during that time, even if you weren’t really into that shit at the time haha.
Now I can’t say I wasn’t totally into it, cause I was a little, I loved his Rick James remix hit, I watched the (much maligned) Saturday Morning Cartoon Hammerman & watched Arsenio Hall’s (original) late night show religiously. With Hammer though, his peers are more like Vanilla Ice, not just because of the commercial aspect but there is some serious legitimacy issues (pun intended) with this guy. As talented as he was (& clearly still is) he’s the perfect example of someone with zero self-awareness that causes some career & personal decisions that he can never return from.
But hey, Prince loved him & enough to loan him a rare sample.
None of that matter on this night, this was just a fun show – So what that the owner of the club probably just loved MC Hammer & is on a quest to use his adult resources to relive his childhood and just flew this dude in for this & all this was is a live paycheck – who cares? It was fun & I’d probably go again.

Setlist:

Let’s Get It Started
Pumps and a Bump
Have You Seen Her
It’s All Good
I’m MC Hammer
Pray
Keep On
Addams Groove
Too Legit To Quit
U Can’t Touch This
She Said
I’m Dreaming

 

Hip Hop Hooray! Eric B & Rakim reunite + Fortress Festival w/ RZA & De La Soul & more (May/2018)

Great month for Hip Hop as some of the greatest of all-time where coming through town left & right including one legendary show I thought I’d never see:

U-God of Wu Tang Clan – March 13th – The Rail Club – Fort Worth, TX

On his way to SXSW in Austin, U-God from the legendary Wu-Tang Clan stops in for a rare show mid week at an obscure club out in the sticks of Fort Worth. So it was no surprise that the attendance was less than scarce. About 40 faithful showed up to hear tracks from his new LP Venom set to drop at the end of the month.

He was very appreciative of the audience no matter the size – “I respect what I got & all of you are my hardcores & I appreciate yall being here” – A busy man he also has his long-awaited tell-all book RAW coming out soon & after reading an excerpt from the book this is going to really fill in some much info about the dysfunction of the rap collective. Hopefully we will have U-God on TrickyKid Radio soon to discuss.

Mixmaster Mike – March 17th – Lava Cantina – The Colony, TX 

And speaking of TrickyKid Radio, we had a blast welcoming Mixmaster Mike to our show while he was in town for a super fun St Patrick’s Day celebration!

Earlier that day, we had the pleasure of sitting down with Mike for a great talk that if you click the above link you can check out for yourself, Lot of great info & stories you might not have heard before. That evening, as you can tell by the above photo, he blows the roof of the place with a full on-assault that covered Rock, Hip-Hop, Metal, Punk & everything in between.
He takes on the wheels of steel for Cypress Hill this Summer, look for tour dates & check out our episode with one of the most innovative personalities in the world.

Erik B & Rakim – April 25th – The Bomb Factory – Dallas, TX

Touring for the first time in 25 years, Eric B & Rakim brought a little mic-to-mouth resuscitation, some rhythm with radiation to the masses once again.

Let me illustrate why Eric B. & Rakim remain one of the genre’s greatest acts:
Rakim exploded previous conceptions of what it meant to be a rapper with an arsenal of verbal hand grenades. It’s hard to overstate his influence on the form as one of the greatest MCs and lyricists ever. In terms of sheer delivery, Rakim was a game changer, one of the genre’s first true technicians.

Rakim brought a jazzy presence to hip-hop with his unbounded, free-form approach to the music, deviating from the straightforward rhyme patterns favored previously. Moreover, he just sounded different. Steely yet laid-back on the mic, Rakim rapped deliberately, with poise and command, eschewing the let’s-get-the-party-started energy levels of so many of his fellow MCs — we’d call ’em peers, but really, Rakim had few.

Now on to Eric B. – I personally am a DJ today because of Eric B.he has much impact on what it meant to be a DJ and producer as his partner did on MCing. Like Rakim, Eric B. possessed prodigious technical skills — dig his robo-wristed scratching on any of the three instrumentals on their 1987 debut Paid in Full. But it’s as a producer where Eric B.’s influence is most deeply felt.

For starters, he played a significant role in popularizing sampling in hip-hop. About those samples: Eric B. favored old-school soul sounds, a then-novel approach that would quickly be absorbed by everyone from A Tribe Called Quest to the Wu-Tang Clan.

In both sound and content, Eric B. & Rakim moved the genre forward, influencing a broad swath of descendants, from future indie backpack rappers who marveled at the duo’s musical progressiveness to the next wave of gritty New York City rappers who found stardom the following decade. All these years later, the music remains resonant.

Setlist – 

Don’t Sweat the Technique
Guess Who’s Back
I Know You Got Soul
My Melody
In the Ghetto
I Got It Made (Special Ed cover)
One for the Money (Horace Brown cover)
Hip Hop Junkies (Nice & Smooth cover)
Mahogany
Move the Crowd
As the Rhyme Goes On
Microphone Fiend
The R
Eric B. Is President
I Ain’t No Joke
Paid In Full

Fortress Festival – April 28th-29th – Kimball Art Museum – Fort Worth, TX

Man the lineup for this year’s Fortress Festival was stacked, especially if your a fan of Hip-Hop & R&B.
I was very excited to see some of my all-time faves on the roster for a perfect weekend in the sun. This fest was so chill & easy – think about that – When you think of multi-day festivals your excited to see so many acts but you think about what a complete pain in the ass most festival experiences are. Not here, parking was easy, staff was friendly, there was only two stages to nagivate & they even had a sampler bar area. Good times.

Day 1 brought the noise hard with of 2 the GOAT in Hip-Hop

The RZA (Wu-Tang Clan)

Shabazz Palaces – 745pm

De La Soul – 830pm

Day 2 brought an artist that I have longed to see: Lee Fields & The Expressions –

His eyes shielded with dark sunglasses and decked out in a shimmering, silver shark-skin suit, Fields strolled on stage like a dazzling faith healer. Stocky and energetic, sizzling with charisma and charm, his mini-Afro patted neatly, perfectly, Fields got the room swaying with his smoky social commentary, “My World.” As he sang this preamble, Fields unbuttoned his jacket, peeled his shades, extended his arms and lead us into the groove.

Running through material from their fine albums, My World (2009) and Faithful Man (2012), Fields and his six-piece band revived soul. On songs like “Still Hanging On,” “Fought For Survival,” and “I Still Got It” they delivered the blessed touch through rump-tumbling bass lines, chicken-grease guitar licks, that organ-pumped, on-the-one rhythm and blues, and the trumpet/tenor-sax horn section punctuating Fields’ wailed verses.

Like Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings or Charles Bradley and the Menahan Street Band, Fields and the Expressions can channel multiple classic soul modes — Muscle Shoals, Stax, Philadelphia International. But on numbers like “Money I$ King,” where Fields shrieked James Brown-like over the band’s grits, greens, and pass-the-peas funk, you could hear why early in his career he was sometimes called, “Lil’ JB.”

A Night of Symphonic Hip-Hop w/ Wylclef Jean – May 2nd – Winspear Opera House – Dallas, TX

Full disclosure: My fiance’ was on hand playing violin with the Dallas Pops & that’s what got me in the building to check this out.
Secondly I say that to admit full bias but at the same time, you should know that previous to this event, I wasn’t exactly a fan of Wyclef Jean. Sure I own a copy of the Fugees’ The Score but it’s not my go-to for Hip-Hop, not to mention every interview with Jean I read/see he doesn’t come off very well for my liking. Next, I too actually did a gig with him way back in 2011 when the Super Bowl came to Dallas & I DJ’d a party for Maxim that we headlined. His show sucked & every performance I’ve seen on TV hasn’t faired much better.

Naturally I didn’t tell my girl all this cause I wanted her going into this hoping for the best. She’s not the Hip-Hop afficiando that I am but she does like it when I play it & we have fun dancing when we go out. Let me cut to the chase & say that Jean eased my fears almost immediately & put on one of the most unique, engaging & memorable shows I’ve seen this year.

Jean also brought along his own electric trio and backup singer, introducing conductor Scott O’Neill with a rapper moniker, “Scott O.”
The orchestra did a fine job filling out Jean’s songbook, culled from his time as a founding member of the Fugees, his solo career and role as a producer and songwriter. the raps were fluid and swinging, addressing a broad range of subject matter.
At one point, in spite of this being an opera house, he stormed the aisle leading a faux conga line like it was Spring Break.
Good times.

Photos – 

Roy Turner
Fortress Festival Staff

NYC Hip-Hop Summer w/ Public Enemy, Slick Rick, Salt N Pepa & more

In part II of the Summer adventures I document one of the best things there is about NYC and that’s Hip-Hop, the good the bad & everything in between is at your fingertips whenever you want it. Logically since this is its birthplace that’s how it should be, but for a white kid growing up in Texas, I would have to wait years and years to see some of these acts that I practically bump into at the bakery now. Some of these acts don’t tour anymore or have never toured but will still do the occasional “local” show and local for them means NYC and its boroughs.

Slick Rick & Biz Markie – July 28th – Grammercy Theater – NYC

Their are few things I enjoy more than just a really fun, old school Hip-Hop show with a super hyped crowd. Nobody fighting, fronting, or causing trouble, just there to have fun like it used to be. And if you wanna have fun, why not have it with the Court Jester of Hip-Hop, Biz Markie?
Alot of people don’t like the Grammercy Theater, but its one of my favorite venues in the city – sure security and staff are dickheads everywhere in this city (Terminal 5 I’m looking at you) but at this place, everyone is really cool and it being right off 23rd St for me its perfect. I’ve seen alot of Hip-Hop shows here, GZA, Q-Tip etc.
Speaking of having an awesome staff, when I got there, my ticket was lost so I had to talk to production.
This kid comes out wearing a Houston Astros hat and I know everything is gonna be all right. We talked Texas, baseball and Hip-Hop and he welcomed me strong (thanks Jason) – just in time as the show was starting.

 

 

Biz Mark was first and the vibe in this place was phenomenal, a show like this in Texas might have drawn 100 people, but there was easily close to 1k strong here, really into it and having a great time.
Between Biz and Slick Rick this really great DJ (who’s name I wish I could remember) who apparently was a name radio DJ that alot of people recognized and appreciated played a great set of old school stuff.
Now it was Slick Rick’s turn –
This was my first time seeing Slick Rick so I can now scratch him off the list of all the MC’s I’ve wanted to see. He was equally fun and then Biz joined him at the end for a great finale.The show was over pretty early but it was raining like hell and I was trying to figure out what to do. See, one thing people who don’t live here don’t know is that its not like you can just go home for a bit and figure it out and then go back out, unless your a gazillionaire. For most people, once they bother to leave their apartment, their out, and once they return, their in. It’s just too much trouble otherwise.
I wasn’t that far from my old haunt Lit, which I don’t think I had been to in over a year and decided to head on over. It’s true, you really can’t go home again because I was at Lit for about an hour, and I didn’t recognize a soul and the vibe and crowd was something completely different and not for me.

Public Enemy w/ Salt-N-Pepa – July 30th – Wingate Park – Brooklyn, NY

I’ve been looking forward to telling this story for awhile and have waited to really get my thoughts together to tell it.
First disclaimer: Sadly, it’s just a fact of life that their are still places in this world, specifically right here in Brooklyn that as a young, white man, I am not welcome solely based by the color of my skin – just like equally sad that their are places, probably even more so, that people of color are not welcome for the same reasons.
I had been wanting to check out the Wingate area of Crown Heights for some time now, Curtis Mayfield has been said to have written We’re a Winnerhere -its an area of Brooklyn once known as “Pigtown,” not far from where Ebbets Field once hosted the Brooklyn Dodgers.
Just my passion for baseball alone I had been wanting to come out here, but had been warned not to.
When I heard that Public Enemy was gonna be playing, those previous warnings didn’t even occur to me, and when I heard that the show was free and that Salt-N-Pepa were opening, even if had, not going was no longer an option.
To sweeten the deal, the concert was part of the park’s ongoing Martin Luther King Jr. Concert Series this being the thirtieth year anniversary of the series, and today was also Chuck D’s birthday, I was beyond ready.

I came out of the subway and as I normally do when I’m in a new neighborhood for the first time, I just followed the people to the park, their was no signs of anything to fear and it never occurred to me that it would.
When I got the park, the entire atmosphere had changed as the sun was setting – I learned that Wingate Park has it own weight lifting culture like the one at Venice Beach, but this had a real prison mentality, and those exercising, like at Venice Beach were on display to those entering the park, but most, including myself didn’t dare look their way.

Then right past that, getting into this park was also like visiting someone in prison – clusters of cops just everywhere and I was frisked three times at several checkpoints before finally entering.
An hour before the show, organizers announced a special guest, Leaders of the New School, who kicked off the show with a rocky start.

 

Audience members who expected to see Busta Rhymes, Charlie Brown, and the whole crew were disappointed. Only one member of the group, Dinco D., was present. He came on stage backed with only a DJ, which brought into question use of the plural “leaders.” He performed only three songs, the last of which was Scenario, the Tribe Called Quest song that featured Leaders of the New School. The audience started to jump and scream when they heard the bass line. Unfortunately Dinco D. spat only his verse, then put the mic down and left the stage.

One thing that was absent here was that of vendors, for which normally I would have appreciated and support their gesture to keep that sort of corporate element out of the park, but the problem was that I was starving and wouldn’t be able to enjoy the concert further without something to eat.
I didn’t want to have to go through that cavity search as before but I was desperate for some food – I went out the way I came in, asked around and they said that their was a store on the corner.
I walk less than two blocks, its still plenty daylight, when I go in, order a sandwich from the deli portion of this bodega and then began scanning the adjacent cooler for something to drink.
Here was something different, they sold beer mainly in singles instead of in quantity and they were selling for cheaper than soda. A decent side can of Budweiser was going for a mere $.75 – that made that choice easy.

As I’m waiting for my sandwich, a gentlemen that looks so much like LL Cool J, that I have to look twice, is making the same beverage choice, when I ask him:
“Is this right?, this is only 75 cents?” – He replies “Yeah, but drink it in here, you don’t wanna get caught with it outside” – Wait I can drink it in here too???

I retrieve my sandwich, and go back to where I was standing where LL Cool J was already partaking in his beverage and I politely say “Wow, I can’t believe we can drink it in here, thank you for the tip” –
We are having a decent enough conversation when suddenly the patrons that are coming in are doing double and triple takes on me, a skinny, pasty white kid,  eating a sandwich, drinking a beer, talking with a local, standing there in my RUN D.M.C. t-shirt –
In hindsight, I realize that they resented it deeply and the RUN D.M.C. shirt just seemed to antagonize them – it must have just screamed poseur to them and in that moment I seemed to embody everything that had ever been taken away from them.
LL picks up on this, and not wanting to look like an Uncle Tom he shouts loudly “Where else the fuck you gonna drink it?” – I still calmly said “Well I know that some zoning allows open containers” – his response (and purposely very loudly with the intent so that the other patrons can hear) “Not around here, there’s not, maybe yall can in White World, but not around here, don’t be bringing your RACIST SHIT UP IN HERE TO OUR NEIGHBORHOOD!!”
Oh gawd. I could have instead recited Maya Angelou’s I KnowWhy the Caged Bird Singsand he still would have found some vehicle to call me a racist, he was just literally spoiling for a confrontation that I sensed was coming sooner than later. Apparently so did the Italian owners of the bodega as they were looming near, not to protect me, but just to keep an eye out. When I complimented them several times on what a great sandwich this was, they didn’t want to return the pleasantry out of fear.
LL just kept letting me have it – I have been all over the world and walked many miles on many streets but this was the first time I was truly terrified and convinced that it was only a matter of time before something was gonna go down.
Here is an example of the exchange – me trying to make nice – “Hey man, who do people tell you that you look like?” – he answers “LL Cool J, I know that, I don’t need some white motherfucker telling me that, what now you think you know more about LL than us, you little white motherfucker?” –
I didn’t wanna make any sudden moves but I had to get out of there. I wanted to show that I wasn’t afraid and decided to finish my sandwich like normal.
Another patron looks at me and says loudly “That sandwich good?!?!” – I nod yes – He gets inches from my face and screams “WELL EAT IT THAN YOU WHITE MOTHERFUCKER!!” – I calmly smile and nod and finish my sandwich and make my way to the exit.
I make it outside and head to the park but after a few steps some other guys who must have seen me inside yell “Hey Opie, how was your fucking sandwich?”
I have no idea what made me do it, but very passively I actually started walking toward them and said “Hey yall going to the concert?” –
They were stunned, they couldn’t believe it, and just nodded. In hindsight I think what saved my ass was that maybe because I’m so skinny it would have looked bad for them to kick my ass or because I showed no fear, or maybe they just thought I was too stupid.
And technically I was, because right then, with the last piece of daylight I had left I should have just called it a failed experiment and headed back to the subway and got the fuck out of there. Instead I headed straight back to the park.

To unpack things a bit, this was a free show in the heart of a neighborhood that grew up with these artists. What that means is that if any of these groups were playing anything less than walking distance for any amount of money the show would have attracted 200 people. But its like a fireworks display, the entire family can come for no money and its closer to walk to than the subway. So people/families that don’t normally get out much, this was a real treat and all of those comforts resulted in about 10k people showing up.

Salt-n-Pepa hit the stage next.  After 25 years in the business, they were still energetic and fun.
Both Salt and Pepa were keeping it sexy even as they reach middle age. Pepa wore short denim shorts and a revealing black top. Salt was a little more conservative, with a loose silver blouse and tight, shiny black pants.

But it was definitely a family friendly show, at least for their set. There was no cursing. At one point, they even brought some of their children and other young relatives on stage, which was a lot of fun.  Less interesting, however, was when Salt brought out her husband Gavin, who appeared to have no interest in being on stage, for the song Whatta Man.Thankfully, Pepa stepped in and asked for an audience member to dance with her. This produced one of the most fun
moments of the night, as the guy who came on stage was a mere 18-years-old and slightly intimidated by Pep. But she made him wrap his arms around her and dance. He smiled while Pepa rapped her verse.

And it got even better when they announced an unexpected special guest — Kid ‘n Play! The rap duo came on stage full of energy and performed one song, Rollin’ with Kid ‘n Play.The audience shouted out the chorus. And when Kid ‘n Play broke into their famous foot tapping dance, thousands of people screamed with joy.

I needed that – I was still so shaken up over what had transpired at the bodega, and was so angry. I was mainly upset that what they had taken from me was now the ability to enjoy this, and Kid N Play made me forget it temporarily.

Public Enemy’s set started strong. They had a solid three piece band — bass, drums, and guitar — that started it off. Then the Public Enemy sirens started to sound, and Chuck D. jumped out front and started with Public Enemy Number one.
Last to take the stage was Flava Flav, and audience enthusiasm was high. A big reflection of Flavor Flav’s celebrity that Public Enemy gives him his own personalized entrance. “Say what you want, but we all got one of these in our family,” explained front man Chuck D, as he affectionately introduced Flav “The key is not to have two of ’em!”

 

It was playful but hinted at the strained relationship so much so that when I used my crendtials to get a better look, I could hear them openly arguing with each other, and the source of this seemed to stem from Chuck D’s frustration with an obviously very stoned Flav when he went into the first of several digressions that interrupted the flow of the show. Flav thanked everyone for supporting “my second career, which is called reality TV” which got some laughs, cheers, and jeers. This eventually lead into a rousing version of 911 is a Joke.

 

The bulk of their set came from the group’s two crowning achievements: 1988’s It Takes a Nation of Millions To Hold Us Backand the 1990 follow-up, Fear of a Black Planet. Those albums have aged beautifully, but they didn’t resort to producing simple facsimiles of their hits like a heritage act. They did several including I Shall Not Be Moved, from their impressive (but sadly almost entirely ignored) new album, Most of My Heroes Still Don’t Appear on No Stamp

When the various messages got lost in the blur of their music, Chuck was more than happy to provide snappy sermons about the dumbing-down effect of technology, the futility of chasing youth and the banality of radio.

As they performed the early classic Timebomb it shed some light on the bond that has kept Public Enemy’s twin focal points united through a quarter of a century of insurgency and insanity.

 

Let’s hope they keep it together for a little while longer, because hip-hop will never know a group like them again.

Photos –

Roy Turner
Erez Avissar
Nicki Digital
Chris Becker

 

Wu-Tang Finally Make It to Dallas (Dec/2011)

The Wu-Tang Clan – Granada Theater – Dallas, TX – December 10th

Ok so I knew what I was getting myself into by going to this show. Its well documented here in my blog about my love/hate relationship with the Wu-Tang Clan, between the brilliance of the recordings to the bafflingly dysfunction in the production of their live show. Its become part of the landscape, “Who’s gonna show up? – Will Meth be there?, Man no way the RZA will show”. These quotes are for real and and on everyone’s mind. What bothers me is that is doesn’t seem to bother people enough to stop supporting them so they will have to do something about it. Or maybe their just hopefuls like me that maybe this time is the one that works.
On bended knees and hats in hand they released a press statement promising that this tour would be the one where they finally get their shit together and that every living member would make the show.
…and the it started…no less than two weeks after this commitment, the RZA backed out of the tour and by the time the tour had started, so did Method Man.
I was already committed to going and I kinda wanted to make up for missing Inspectah Deck a few weeks previous.

But once the beat for Bring Da Ruckus started up, all that ceased to matter. And the crowd — steaming and sweating, nut-to-butt, mostly white and easily the most jam-packed I’ve ever seen the Granada — shouted along with every word. It was a mess in the same way the best parties are.

Another highlight was a cameo by Erykah Badu, who stepped on stage long enough to soak in the roar of approval from the crowd but sadly didn’t touch the mic. Still, the moment was enough to add to the love-fest, family reunion vibe. As did the appearance from Young Dirty Bastard, son of the late Ol’ Dirty Bastard, who led the group through verses of Shimmy Shimmy Ya and Baby I Got Your Money in tribute to his father. Which might be why the group’s sorta-sincere cover of the O’Jays Family Reunion went over so well.

Setlist:  

Bring da Ruckus
Shame on a Nigga
Clan in da Front
Da Mystery of Chessboxin’
Wu-Tang Clan Ain’t Nuthing ta Fuck Wit
Reunited
One Blood Under W
Triumph
Ice Cream (Raekwon)
Bring the Pain
Family Reunion (The Ojays cover)

Tribute to Old Dirty Bastard – 

Shimmy Shimmy Ya
Got Your Money

Liquid Swords (GZA/Genius)
Duel of the Iron Mic (GZA/Genius)
The Fourth Chamber
Protect Ya Neck
Da Rockwilder
C.R.E.A.M. 

All in all it was a pretty freaking good show, especially compared to some of the bullshit I’ve seen them pull in the past. And for real, only an ingrate wouldn’t be completely satisfied with the version of Wu that rocked the house for an hour and a half.

Brooklyn Hip Hop Festival 2010

So the fun weekend continued after returning from Jones Beach as well as the Hip Hop. On Sunday, my new Spanish Ladyfare and I went out to Prospect Park for some fun. We started out at the Prospect Park Zoo, which I also had never been to and wanted to check out. I hadn’t realized how freaking huge this park was as I couldn’t find the Zoo and nobody could tell me the right way. We finally get there, and had a nice day. The zoo is small but unique and intimate and bit more interactive.

Then we walked over the Bandshell for a highly anticipated Hip-Hop show that kinda capped off this great week of celebrating Hip-Hop and Brooklyn.

Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival – The J Dilla Seminar – July 6th

     So I was excited that I had been hired by AOL to cover the Brooklyn Hip Hop Festival. As a life-long fan of hip hop and being hired to write about it, in the city of its birth was nothing but exhilarating for me. Today was the first day of the festival and the event that I chose to cover today was a seminar lead by Q-Tip about the life of J Dilla. Held in a library in Cobble Hill by my old apartment, The seminar started with a group called the J Dilla Ensemble, which was lead by a young-ish music teacher/superfan and his students from Boston, doing Dilla pieces via keys, drums, bass, guitar, and a few horns. And this hopelessly white girl would occasionaly sing, and she was good.
I think I benefited from the fact that it was advertised in two sections and the first was to feature a few lesser known panelists and then the later one with Q-Tip and Dilla’s mom, Ma Dukes, but when I got there they had switched it, so not alot of people were there for the first section, and then a ton of people showed up after realizing that they had missed Q-Tip. Since I got there early and wanted to cover the whole thing I sat in the front row about 3 feet from Tip. He was very intense, and spoke very carefully and thoughtfully. You could tell that the pain of the loss of Dilla was still very real and obvious to Q-Tip. He told alot of first-hand stories that I had never heard before, and as the enigma that is J Dilla, its so largely undocumented, so I was inspired and happy that this was being held. It was largely to promote the J Dilla Foundation that supplies inner-city kids with music education.
The second half was another panel after a short film. This time Ma Dukes again, but with a few guys from Slum Village and then the teacher from before. You could tell that the teacher, was like a Star Wars geek standing next to George Lucas. He held it together okay, but you could tell he wanted to break out haha.
The seminar was done well, with a great reception of food/beer and it was an incredibly inspirational day.Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival – Salute the DJ w/ Rob Swift – Music Hall of Williamsburg – July 8th

Another event I was covering for the Festival, and one I was much anticipating. As a DJ myself, I was excited about the focus and loved the idea of a DJ-cenntric event, not to mention but one of my all time heroes, Rob Swift was gonna bless the 1s and 2s. I get there and I’m hanging out with the crew from Brooklyn Bodega who are producing the festival. Great group of people, a smarter, more ambitious and passionate lot your not likely to find, especially about Hip-Hop. They have been gracious to have me on their radio program a few times in the last couple of years. So I’m enjoying talking with them, but this is not only my least favorite venue in Brooklyn, its one of my least fave in the entire fucking world. Between their aggressive, asshole security out front, you have to deal with the smug, elitist that work the Will Call window. I usually feel sorry for the people that work that gig, but here they seem to enjoy telling people that shows are sold out, or that their tickets are not there etc. Its always a hassle here, and this time was no exception. Not only were they giving the freaking producers of the event, they were even blocking some performers from entering! – What is it with these fucks?
I finally get it settled and get in, and in time to see Rhettmatic from the Beat Junkies getting down.

 

 

The place is packed and their is such a good vibe here. Their is nothing like a good Hip-Hop show. You will see every race, gender, creed etc. all dancing together, laughing and having a great time. I’m not there 10 mins when two older black women are dragging me, a skinny white boy, out on the floor. Just the real deal in every way and such a good time.
And then here comes my man Rob Swift – This cat is one of my biggest influences and inspirations and really my introdcution into turntabilsim. If you see him rawk hardcore, you will know why. It’s mind-boggling and its happening right in front of you. 

 

 

 The show ends at 2am and I thank all of the staff at Brooklyn Bodega and got invited to after-hours but I had been in meetings all day and was exhausted so I called it a night.OkayAfrica w/ The Roots and Talib Kweli – Prospect Park – Brooklyn, NY – July 11th

The Roots headlined the OkayAfrica World Cup 2010 Finals party to celebrate the first time in its 80-year history the tournament will take place on African soil. With a kick-off by Sahr Ngaujah, the star of the hit Broadway musical Fela!, the show featured performances by artists from all corners of the Diaspora, including host Talib Kweli (Brooklyn), Bajah + The Dry Eye Crew (Sierra Leone) former Trickykid Alumni-  Blitz the Ambassador (Ghana), and many others. Musically omnivorous hip-hop icons The Roots honor the fresh music of Africa by jamming throughout the whole day with surprise guests and capping it all off with a killer closing set.

    

We had a blast, and it was such a great environment, let alone the show. Their was a suggested donation but it was basically a free show and something like lover 10k showed up, just droves of people everywhere. Their was such a mix of diversity in performers and in the audience and a proud moment for the people of Africa. They had food tents set up everywhere, and instead of like hot dogs and pretzels, we ended up buying a whole roasted chicken, salad and dessert haha. Good meal and unforgettable music. After the show we walked around the park some more, and ended up just falling asleep in the grass under a tree. A wonderful day.    Private Screening of Basquiat: The Radiant Child hosted by DJ Spooky – Salt Space – NYC – July 12th

 

    So since our phones didn’t work, and because of the language barrier anyway, talking on the phone or texting wasn’t an option for me and the Spanish Armada.
Its so interesting to me that her and I for two weeks, never once communicated by phone, we just set everything up via email, the day before, and we never had one misstep, where as people that I communicate with all the time by means of phone and text, we miscommunicate all the time. So she actually finds in on the street this time, surprising me from behind. A few blocks from a private art gallery that I had received an invite to. Tonight’s event was a private, advance screening of a documentary that Mike D‘s wife, Tamra Davis had made about Basquiat called The Radiant Child, hosted by my friend and whom sent me the invite, DJ Spooky.
We get inside, and the Gallery is really small and only able to seat about 40 people. Now a quick disclaimer, I don’t claim to know really anything about art, art history or really anything about the business of art and its movers and shakers. I do know what I like however, and I’ve never been one to hold Basquiat in any higher esteem than anyone else. I’ve also never subscribed to the sexiness of his legend nor really understood its warrant. Having said that, it was a real trip to be in the same room with all of these people that were a part of that late 1970’s/early 1980’s downtown music/art scene of NYC. Since they were all interviewed or featured in the documentary, it was a reunion of sorts and suddenly the place was moving like a Studio 54 thirty-year reunion.
DJ Spooky did a brief set and introduced the film and moderated a Q&A after the film with Tamra and a few of the other cast members.

 

The film was done very well, and I enjoyed it, but it only confused me more as to the appeal of this guy and wonder if he were still alive if we would be talking about him at all. I know this sounds terribly dismissive, but based on the film, it really seemed like he was just this manipulative, druggie loser, that was able to dupe people that were so full of their own shit, that they wanted to be near what was happening so they enabled him. Ultimately his own demons caught up with him, so instead of his early death seen as this tragedy, it really seemed like the imminent result of that kind of lifestyle.
Afterwards we went and got some Chinese takeout and ate in that little park right off 23rd St. While walking to the subway, we saw all the kids in Iron Maiden shirts coming from their show at Madison Square Garden across town. Maybe one day I will actually see that band.