I went with my lady to go see Raheem Devaughn at the Carter Baron 2 weeks ago. Though not the most avid listener, I came from it not only more of a fan, but with more respect for him. Two words, Live Show. He put on a great one, an experience you might say. There was a live band, he held up cue cards the entire show to direct the audience, he even had an artist paint the entire show. At first I didn't understand it but it was to build an ambiance during the performance. True showmanship.
Great live shows are a dying art. I was looking at Vh1's Soul School and saw The Gap Band's Early in the morning and Janet Jackson' control. What struck me about both were the duality of both artists to sing, dance, and play instruments well. I miss the energy that performances like this give me.
Live shows bring songs to life in a way videos can't quite capture. Its more personal, intimate, and you feel a part of the experience. A lot of rap is missing this. There are very few artists that headline their own show with just a mic and a DJ ( Jay-Z, Lil Wayne). Most just walk around a stage and say the lyrics. It's not cool to dance anymore and have fun on stage (Big Daddy Kane). I think Steve Harvey said it best on Kings of Comedy -"I paid 49.99 for these tickets, damn it you scream.". When I think of great performances, I remember The Roots 2009 Rock The Bell performance with Skillz doing classic Hip Hop songs. That's what great performances are made of.
All in all, rappers need to step there performance game up. Especially after another wack ass Bet Awards. That "I'm on One" performance put me in a coma. I should have watched the video again. What say you fellow visionaries? What other artists give great concert performances? What live shows stand out to you?
So sing-song rapper Ja Rule is in the pen now snorlax but his anti-climatic leave from hip hop rehashes the subject of how forgiving the hip hop community is when its artists screw up. Actually I think it's the most forgiving of all the genres. Whether you sold drugs, shot a man down, or got involved in a sexual mishap, if you give us a hot single we forgive you. Give us a hot album, you never did anything.
Hey, we all make mistakes. Theirs are just in public for all to see. But that begs the question; as fans do we ever have the right to critique an artists' personal choices? Some examples..
Lil Wayne
I know I talked about this much earlier but, I can't think of any other rapper who's career has benefited more from jail time in recent memory. He went away for eight months, had an album out while in jail, and a ridiculous amount of features and videos. Now we are all awaiting Tha Carter 4. Not to mention he is sober. That's important because he's never made music that way. Possibilities are endless.
Now in jail for the second time in two years, I really think this is hurting his career. It worked the first time because of the timing of the album release. But it's not doing much to build an even bigger fan base when no one sees you or much material. T.I. is a dope rapper. I know he can rebound again. It's hard to hate on em when he makes music like this.
Chris Brown
No surprise that T.I. featured him in the video above. They both have weathered storms in their careers. Having one of the greatest music comeback stories in the last couple of years, there is no better example of hip hop's forgiveness than this guy. Though I do not cosign what he did, I really believe this was a blessing. Think about it: Chris Brown has been putting out hits since he was a teen. Many teen artists have trouble making the transition into an adult while keeping their fans with them (Bow Wow). Having this tragedy gave him the opportunity to explore his dark side while taking time off after Graffiti failed. When he returned from his hiatus, as a mature adult, all the pieces came together and you get this....
Honorable Mention: Prodigy
I almost forgot about him to be honest. I mean to be away 3 years is crazy. Being one half of the infamous Mobb Deep automatically makes you a legend. People should still check for him. His best stuff might still be ahead of him. He's got that new mixtape out right now. Let me know how it is.
So who are some other artists that mess up and get easy passes for good music? Kanye? R.Kelly?
Practically every generation of hip hop listeners over 25 remembers a time when they thought the music they were listening to at the time was their 'golden age'. A time when all the music that they heard was amazing and perfect. Real or imagined it felt perfect to all of us. We often use that 'golden age' as the standard for which we compare all music we hear.
I like a lot of old school music from different genres and eras (Temptations, Sam Cooke, Dramatics, Manhattans, Coltrane, etc..) Because of it I often find myself staying up late at night listening to old songs that are sampled in hip hop today. There is an art to it that I find fascinating and I respect anyone that does it especially well.
While on whosampled.com, I ran into one of my favorite samples of the late Gil Scott Heron, Home Is Where The Hated Is sampled on Kanye West's classic Late Registration. That beat and Heron's voice haunt me into a trance while listening. Thank God Common did it justice. I felt a little robbed by the length. I knew his name. I knew his music without realizing it. The beautiful thing about music is that you don't have to dig to deep to find the connections. I say all this to say if you are passionate about something, keep learning about it.
Good music is out there. R.I.P to a legend.
Contact me at hiphoppolitician@gmail.com. Follow me @HipHopPoli
