Showing newest posts with label Band. Show older posts
Showing newest posts with label Band. Show older posts

When The Henny In The System: The Roots & Q-Tip for Hennessy Artistry

Saturday, Septemeber 25, 2010
Hennessy Presents: Hennessy Artistry - The Art of Blending

If you were at the Hennessy Artistry Event and weren’t drinking Hennessy before then…You are NOW! What an awesome way to promote your brand.

Free Event + Talent Artists + Free-flowing Hennessy = Success

Hennessy is hitting up major cities promoting their Art of Blending campaign by providing two of my favorite things: Music and liquor. The purpose of Hennessy Artistry is to promote the art of mixing various genres and blending the talents of the world’s top artists (At least that’s what their Facebook page says). Of course, they also focused on the art of blending Hennessy for your new favorite cocktail.

The Miami leg of the tour featured the headliners The Roots and Q-Tip. DJ D-Nice was on the 1s and 2s to start the party.

If you have never seen The Roots perform live, you MUST. It’s what Hip-Hop is supposed to be – lyrics and instruments. They were giving the crowd life for their entire performance. Q-Tip, a showman at heart, rocked the mic along side Black Thought for the better half of the show.

They came out the gate performing “J.Beez Comin’ Through” by the Jungle Brothers, and effortlessly performed some of Hip-Hop’s most heavy-hitting rhymes: N.W.A.’s “Straight out of Compton”, Eric B. and Rakim’s “Microphone Fiend” and Slick Rick’s “Mona Lisa”.

The crowd, as blended as the Hennessy drinks they were serving up, was moderately amped up, but when the strings to “Bonita Applebum” snuck through, it started getting wild.

Q-Tip quietly snuck off stage while The Roots continued with their original cuts “How I Got Over”, “Thought @ Work” and “Here I Come”. It was non-stop entertainment.

The Roots brought out Daniel Merriweather to perform his song “Change”. I wish he could have done at least two songs, but the unknown bevy of guests to follow was probably the reason why he didn’t.

Kat Deluna came out in her fire read catsuit to perform her hit single “Whine Up”. She brought out three backup dancer dudes to help her whined it up, but the crowd seemed like they had no idea who she was, and was not impressed by her performance. I thought she did well. Her voice was solid and steady through all her gyrating, and she tried her best to engage the crowd. I think her poppy sound was a little to abrubt for some of the stushy hip-hop heads. She did redeem herself with them by slipping back on stage with Q-Tip to lend vocals to Tribe’s “Verses From the Abstract”. She did a great job. She’s a cute girl, but does she remind anyone else of Christina Milian??

While Black Thought rested, Q-Tip blessed the crowd with two of my FAVORITE Tribe songs, “Hey Sucka Ni**a” and “Electric Relaxation”. If you follow me on twitter, you have probably seen me quote both of these a time or two.

The show had been going on for almost 90 minutes when The Roots came back with “You Got Me”, arguably their most commercially successful song to date. Daniel Merriweather predictably came back out to lace Erykah’s part. What WASN’T so predictable however was the illiest pitbull in a skirt herself, EVE to striding out with her verse, totally reviving the crowd that had been standing forever and were slipping into a henny haze.

This is when I felt myself starting to lose my mind. I LOVE Eve. What a treat!! She performed her three major singles “Who’s That Girl”, “What Y’all Want” “Tambourine” and “Blow Your Mind”. Secretly, I was heavily anticipating the return of Drag-On so they could perform “Let’s Talk About”. Easily my favorite song of hers. She looked spectacular and commanded the stage with her long legs and even longer weave. Her makeup was flawless and she looked happy and healthy. LOVE HER.

The band fell back into their original music with “The Seed (2.0)”, but quickly shut it down to do something NO one in that crowd expected…they brought out BOBBY mother-f-in BROWN. He busted on the stage with “Every Little Step”, and every 70’s and 80’s baby in attendance lost their henny blown mind. This was the Art of Blending…The Roots and Bobby Brown. Whodathunk!? The most amazing part…it totally worked!!

Bobby tore Ice Palace completely down. Say what you want about that man, but his voice still sounds fantastic! In true Bobby fashion, he scooted and flicked his tongue at the girls in the front, but nobody cared. It was Bobby Brown. The best part was watching Black Thought and Q-Tip stand back and watch it go down, enjoying the show like rest of us. Amazing.

These are classic nights that I love in Miami. I’m from Detroit so by nature, Hennessy runs in my veins, but now, I’m officially a fan. This was genius! Thank you Hennessy.

Check out the pics and flicks.





































PEACE.
LOVE.
MUSIK.

Maroon 5 @ Bayfront Park

Thursday, August 19, 2010

Third time’s a charm!

I fell in love with Maroon 5 INSTANTLY. I heard the album ONE time and I was a head-over-heels fan. It was 2004 when I finally jumped on the bandwagon.  I had just moved to Chicago, and it was my first time living by myself.  Songs About Jane helped me fight a serious case of loneliness as I belted out every word during my ultimate empty living room performance.

Of course, in true fashion, I looked for tickets to any upcoming concert they had in Chicago. They were performing soon, and I bought tickets and got stuck in another city and missed the concert! I was passed pissed. My friends gloated for months about what I missed.

The SECOND time I went to see them was in Miami. But as luck would have it, the concert was scheduled the same date I was scheduled to be out of town. Boo.

So this is my third attempt at seeing the band, and nothing was going to come between me and this concert!

Black Eyed Peas @ American Airlines Arena

Saturday, February 6, 2010
The Energy Never Dies Tour

We all know the open history of the Black Eyed Peas. Yeah yeah...they were a dyed-in-the-wool hip-hop group going nowhere fast. Then they injected this pretty white girl with the big voice and Boom Boom Pow...SUPER GROUP!

Because I say they were going nowhere fast, doesn’t mean I think they were talentless – but commercially........they were going nowhere fast! Their albums were more for self-proclaimed “Hip-Hop Heads” and featured artists like Les Nubians, De La Soul and Macy Gray. It’s to no surprise that when Elephunk dropped, the general population was confused about it being their THIRD studio album. If you’re anything like me, you had the screw face the first time you say the “Where is the Love?” video. “They sure look like the Black Eyed Peas...is that Justin Timberlake singing?? Who’s the white chick??”

Arguably, a complete 180% from Bridging the Gap, Elephunk brought them to the masses, and began their onward spiral of catchy beats and popular tunes. I was not sold on Elephunk. It was just OKAY. Now having two other albums, listening to Elephunk reminds me of how awkward their transformation was at this time. “Hey Mama” and “Shut Up” were big hits, but you still had to wonder... “Who’s the white chick?!?”

BEP’s official crossover album, Monkey Business was a BIG success for them. It pushed them into the limelight with Fergie riding high. The album got average reviews, but I was feelin’ it. It was just enough up-and-at-em pop music I needed in 2005!

I, like many, have slowly become regular fans of BEP. I feel like their music has its own lane. It’s not really pop...but it’s not really hip-hop either. But for them...it WORKS! I admittedly didn’t jump at the first sign of ticket sales, but I begrudgingly decided to go (thanks to Loriann!). I am SERIOUSLY glad I did. They put on a S-H-O-W!!!!!!

I was impressed from beginning to end! Three parts of the show stood out for me:

  1. Will-i-am did this DOPE freestyle to BBM messages from the audience. They asked people with blackberries to text anything to the number they provided, and they showed up on the screen. From that, he used those texts to do a freestyle. HOOOOT! That gave me a newfound sense of respect for him.
  2. Will-i-am’s DJ set. A DJ stand emerged from the floor and then lifted in the air over the crowd. Visually it was spectacular. Albeit I don’t consider Will-I-am anywhere NEAR my top 10 DJ list, his song selections were great!
• In The Ayer
• Put Your Hands Up 4 Detroit (one of my FAVS!!!)
• American Boy
• Don’t Stop ‘til You Get Enough
• Don’t Stop the Music
• Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’
• White Lines (Don’t Don’t Do It)
• Thriller
• Jump Around
• Otherside
• Smells Like Teen Spirit (Another all-time favorite!)
• Don’t Stop Believin’
• Right Round
The crowd went bananas!! A little something for everyone.

3. “I Gotta Feeling”: It was the last song they performed and it was incredible! It had all the energy and drama you would expect this song to have in a live performance. Best way to end the show!

They seemed comfortable on stage. Will-i-am, being the biggest character of the group. They worked around each other flawlessly. One drawback was Fergie’s microphone. At points in the show, you could barely hear her. I couldn’t tell if you was a technical issue or she was singing extra soft. She didn’t lip-sync which made me happy, but that sound drove me crazy. She was cat-walking up and down the stage, which was awesome because her dancing (which she didn’t do much of) leaves a lot to be desired. She looked amazing tho! Her body makes me want to eat, sleep and shit on a treadmill! She perform three singles from The Dutchess; “Fergalicious”, “Glamorous” and “Big Girls Don’t Cry”.

The staging was elaborate and fanciful. They obviously spared no expense with the production technology to appeal to the audience.

This was their second stop on the North American tour. LMFAO and Ludacris (why...I don’t know) opened for them. The concert was the Saturday before Superbowl, and traffic was STUPID, we I missed LMFAO. We came in the middle of the last song them performed. Womp.

Ludacris was enjoyable. I’ve seen him perform a few times on other tours. There wasn’t much to the set, and since the crowd was pretty mixed, some of his songs were a littttttle lost on them. Lol “Back seat, windows up...” Still love that song!!

Bottom Line. THAT was concert. These are the reasons I LOVE concerts. Pure and absolute entertainment. If there are tickets still available for you to see this concert. PLEASE do. You won’t be disappointed.





Love.
Peace.
Music.


CeCe Teneal @ Ginger Bay Cafe

Monday, January 25, 2010

I. Seriously. Love. Talented. People!

This was a day when I had a million things to do and had no business going to kick it, but sometimes you just HAVE to feed your soul!  I'm so glad I decided to jet up to Hollywood for The Soulcial.  It was well worth the drive, and well worth the time I could (should) have spent finishing my ever growing To Do list.

If I've never heard an artist's work before, I typically don't like to search and listen via YouTube or MySpace first, if I have the opportunity to see them perform live.  I hadn't heard anything  from CeCe Teneal, but from the moment she opened her mouth, I knew I was going to enjoy the performance.  She gives off an I-do-this-because-I-love-it vibe!  Singing is clearly her passion, and thankfully she's good at it! Teneal would have fit right in at the December SOULcial with the other big hair, big voice divas.  She was rockin' OUT!

She did two original songs, but mostly sang songs from other ladies with big voices: Jill Scott's "Is It The Way" "Long Walk" and "Hate on Me", The Fugee's version of "Killing Me Softly", Chrisette Michele's "If I Had My Way", and Floetry's "Say Yes".  She also covered En Vogue's "Don't Let Go" that rocked ALL of Hollywood Boulevard!  KILLED it!  Check the second video below.  Her selection of songs weren't for the faint at heart.  You shouldn't pick those types of songs unless you can do them justice, which thankfully, she did!


The band, Soul Kamotion was fan-damn-tastic!  I couldn't catch "Hate on Me" on video, so check out Ingrid B's video of it here.  They mixed in "Down 4 My Ni**az" which turned out to be a kick ass remix for that song!  Check the link...The drummer is goin' IN!! Awesome...just awesome!

I found out that CeCe Teneal and I, share a birthday, so you know that makes her special in my book!! 

DJ MSquared was also there working it out on the turntables! I heart great DJs!  I'll have to post my The Art of the DJ post soon.  I firmly believe that being a DJ is a talent, not a skill.  DJ MSquared definitely has talent!

Check all of them out!!

Check the Pics & Flicks!







Love.
Peace.
Music.

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No Doubt @ Cruzan Amphitheatre

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

LONG LIVE ROCK!










I LOVE NO DOUBT!!!!

Tragic Kingdom came out when I was 13 years old, and although they had two albums prior to this, I hadn't heard any of their songs until "Just a girl." To a 13 year old girl, that song was MAJOR in '95!! MAJOR!! lol.

My mom bought me that album for Christmas that year, and ever since then, I've been a fan. I saw them in '98 when they came to Michigan, so it's been 11 years since I'd seen them live, and they've had 2 more albums since then. Their albums are solid, and Tragic Kingdom reminds me of the best part of the 90s!

Their performance was GREAT! You can tell that they're really comfortable with being a group, because all the songs seemed almost unrehearsed, like it was just second nature. They're energy was on 10. I love Adrian Young and that tutu! lol! Gwen sounded great by herself too. I was trying to determine if she was lip-synching or singing live. I'm 99% positive she was singing live, based on breaths you could hear her take every now and then. But she was too cute! She didn't sing any of her solo songs, which I found interesting.

When I saw them in 98, she was jumpin around the stage like a crazy person...it was so fun. It seems as though she's mellowed out a LITTLE, but she was still jumpin around that stage. She'll be 40 this year, and her body is SICK! And I just love the thought of a group 40+ rockin out like that!!!! DOPE.

Paramore was a good opening act for them. They opened with "Misery Business", which is probably their biggest hit. That song sounds so personal. Hayley Williams, their lead singer has a CRAZY voice. I was impressed by her range, and how strong her voice was. I don't have any of their albums but I have a few select singles.

There were SOOOOOOOOOO many people in the crowd. It was at a ampitheatre, so some of the seats were reserved (like ours!), but most seats were lawn seats, so it was just PACKED up in there! We had a great time. I'm really glad I got to see No Doubt!

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Suenalo @ Jazid

Saturday, April 4, 2009

Suénalo is a Miami homegrown 10 piece Afro-Cuban, hip-hop, R&B, Latin, and funk band.

The pictures came out okay, but you can't really see anything on the video because it was SO dark in Jazid. I posted the video anyway because I wanted you to at least HEAR them.

Check the pics and flick. (Click the pictures for larger images).








(boy oh boy...T'Amber"oune)


(Jazmine, Me, Amber & Larri)

THEY ARE DOOOOOOPE! I literally went straight home and looked them up on iTunes. So you KNOW I was diggin' it if I was going to buy their album that quick! lol

I wouldn't even know where to begin with all those instruments. Some of the members were switching off between instruments...during a song! I didn't really know what to expect, but I surely didn't expect anyone to start rapping over their songs but they pulled it off. The day was very eventful, and by the time we got there, I was so tired I could barely stand, but they were SO good that we ended up sitting there for hours listening to them. I really was impressed.

One of the band members allowed Amber to play the tambourine and this made her night...possibly her life, especially after one of the band members told her "you can't say tambourine without saying Amber!" LOL! She did a fantastic job!



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Jazz in the Gardens @ Dolphin Stadium

Saturday, March 28, 2009
4th Annual Jazz in the Gardens hosted by Tom Joyner

Jazz in the Gardens is a two-day festival in Miami Gardens. We only bought tickets for the first day, but they had a decent line-up for both days. The headliners for March 28th were: Anthony Hamilton, Common, Erykah Badu, Will Downing and Roy Ayers. The Headlines for March 29th were: Maze featuring Frankie Beverly, Babyface, Kenny G, Angelique Kidjo, and Johnathan Butler.

This was my first year going so I was pretty excited. What I WASN'T thrilled about however, was our WACK seats :( We waited too late to get tickets and ended up WAY in the back. I like to be up close and personal! lol. Despite our seating arrangements, the day was beautiful, and the place was PACKED!

I had to take pictures of this big screen that we were pretty much sitting right in front of.

Check the pics & flicks. (click the picture for larger images)













(Roxanne, Seeta, Josephine & Friend)
(Monique, Jazmine, Tanya & Natalie)

Paulette Dozier: FLY. I don't know how old this woman is, but she was EXTRA FLY! lol...that's all I could focus on! lol...seriously. She's a native Floridian so she got a lot of love. I enjoyed her set, but I couldn't even tell you what she sang, because Monique and I were too busy talking about her outfit.

Roy Ayers: Never seen him perform live before. He's got some hits! His band was really good too.

Will Downing: Now, I love some Will Downing, but I was SO over his performance that was making me feel extra uncomfortable! Seriously!! There was a lot of "sexy baritone" talking, and "LL lip-lickin", that I was just over!! My older sistas in the crowd were definitely feeling it, but it just made me feel like my daddy was in the club trying to pick up girls. Sorry. Seriously speaking, he looked great. He was really sick for a while, and had lost a lot of weight, but he looked like he had recovered well.

Eyrkah Badu: We waited for an HOUR or more for her to come on stage...and they were already behind!! Natalie said the last time she saw her, she kept the crowd waiting for THREE hours. So clearly arms were crossed and feet were tapping, but when she came out, nobody was mad anymore! It was like magic! She's so flyyyyyyy. I was drooling over her hat and those shoes for days after. Musically, she's the TRUTH. Every time I see her I feel the same way! She always seems so comfortable on stage...like she's at home. I LOVE THAT. I think that's why her performances always seem personal, even when she is an hour late. :)

Common: I automatically think of Chicago whenever I see him. I've seen him perform countless times, but let me tell you how he straight ripped this show! For one, this was JAZZ in the Gardens, so I think we were all a little surprised to see him on the bill, and I think he had the most work to do as far as crowd participation, because the old heads at the stadium, either 1. had no clue who he was, or 2. thought he was just some run-of-the-mill rapper. But he was the ONLY performer that day to have all those people on their feet by the end of their performance. There are two things I always look for when he performers...his break-dancing, and his freestyles! Did them both...loved them both! lol. I really wish I recorded that freestyle because it was just so on point! He did a little ode to old school hip-hop, which I loved...naturally.

Tichina Arnold joined him on stage briefly to curse and holler (sing). Mz. Badu surprisingly joined him on stage for "The Light". Given their past, it wasn't awkward at all! lol.

We didn't stay for Anthony Hamilton. We had been there ALLLLLLLLLL day and it was after midnight before Common even got off stage! I'm kinda bummed that we missed him, but we hit MAJOR traffic on the way home...and that was without the stadium traffic, so all-in-all, it worked out for the best.

Next year, the DAY the tickets go on sale, is when we will be buying tickets. No excuses! ;)




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Back To Basics @ Love/Hate

Friday, March 27, 2009
Public Wizard & Good Vibes Entertainment present Back 2 Basics

There was a lengthy list of performers since this event started at 1pm. But, the kid's got a 9-5, so clearly I didn't get there until around 6pm! I'm not sure how many performances we missed, but we got there in enough time to see the ones I didn't want to miss!

Click the pics for larger images...









(the girls!)


I wrote about Rahsaan in an earlier post. His album, Georgetown isn't out yet (*sad face*), but should be out sometime this summer.

Basic Vocab is a group from Miami (by way of other places in the world). The group consist of JL Sorell, Mental Growth (Mark Gordon of Good Vibes Entertainment...responsible for Classic Sundays @ Love/Hate) and producer Tony Galvin. The dude in the white shirt above is Donwill of Tanya Morgan...he's not a member of the group, but is featured on their latest single "There You Are".

I've only been in Miami for three years now, but I can guarantee you that neither Rahsaan nor Basic Vocab have what most would consider a "Miami sound". I promise when you hear Basic Vocab's first album "The General Dynamic" you'll keep looking at the 2006 release date thinking it's a misprint for 1996. Their sound has that perfect mid-90's smooth hip-hop vibe. Makes you feel right at home. The group is gearing up to release their second album, which I believe is called "The Better Way"??? Don't quote me on that!

Rahsaan's sound is a little different from BV's, debut solid nonetheless. He's originally from Brooklyn, and it's laced all up and through his tracks! lol. I like him, and artists like him because they remain true to their music, regardless of the same shit that is released for mainstream consumption. They allow you to remain fans of the music.

So - kinda disappointed that I didn't really catch anyone I haven't seen perform before, but it was fun anyway.



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