Common Rocks The Metro: A DJ Ho timeline

9am - 6pm
It's the day before Australia day and everyone is thinking about what they are going to do 2moro. BBQ's, hanging out with the fam, having a few quiet drinks with friends, sleeping in. It's all calm before the storm.

Me? No siree, I'm nervous, agitated, excited, ready to hear one of Chicago's finest. In eager anticipation, I'm chatty, smiling, ready to rumble baby cause tonite Common is playing at the Metro. I've been so hyped up about since I found out he was coming. Just counting down the work hours.

9.30pm
I'm standing outside the Metro, on the hard bitumen pavements of George Street. As I walk through the glass doors, I can feel the vibe in the air, I can feel the beats. Walking up those steep red steps, I soak up the atmosphere and start headnoddin' to the hip hop beats that fill the air.

10.30pm
It's pitchblack. But its noisy up in here. Like we're in the eye of the hurricane. I'm standing right up the top level of the Metro with a perfect aerial view of the stage. We're chanting "COMMON, COMMON, COMMON!". People are moving around on red lit stage. Then BOOM! Common runs out madly back and forth. He hits us with "BE" from the same titled album. So much energy, so much clarity in his voice. Waving his hands, we move in tune to the lyric: Hands in the air, we wave'em like we just don't care (had to say that!). If there is such thing as a natural high, I've just experienced it. Ivan and I agree "I never knew he was such a good live performer". Words can't describe how happy I am at this stage.

He then went through more songs from his latest album, giving hip hop fiends "Faithful", a track where he talks about if God was a female, and would we view females differnetly. That then led to the polar opposite - nasty trick ass females that try to use males as he laced "Testify". As he explained, the Queen Pen - you know her, we all have come across a manipulative female that wouldn't think twice about letting a man take the blame.

Above: Actual Concert Footage. Common is wearing a white shirt. Exclusive for DJ Ho readers - Copyright DJ Ho 2006.

11pm
He even had a call from Talib Kweli on the mobile and led to "Get'Em High". However, I had seen this before in the North Sea concert. In fact, that's the one criticism I would have about this concert - its a bit predictable because I had seen the same sequence of songs, the routine before. But its a harsh criticism cause I guess all performers have like a set they perform - even watching Guru twice, I'd seen the same stuff previously. For example, Common did the whole bring the hottest chick from the audience onto stage and dance (bump N Grind style) with her while he sang one of his love tracks to her - and that was straight from the North Sea concert. Although, he did get props from the audience when he mentioned the suburb in a freestyle where that girl was from: "I'm down with Campbelltown".

Pic: DJ Alvin up top, Hottie on the left, Common mackin' on the right. DJ Ho Copyright 2006.

Ooooohh, importantly back to the music: The hip hop fiends needed another hit to satisfy thier addiciton so he came at us with the classic "I used to love H.E.R" from way back in the day, a song where he talks about hip hop as if it was a female. There were other classic bangers but I don't know their name, tracks from One Day It'll All Make Sense, Electric Circus, and the O.G album Can I borrow a dollar.

I believe that most of the audience were more familiar with his new material like myself and he responded with the radio friendly "Go" and hit at the haters with "They Say". But he saved the best til last, leaving "The Corner" up his sleeve. That song with The Last Poets, is sick. So good - he talks about the corner as his refuge, his rock of gibraltor, where he grew up - the street corner. Where drug deals went down, where people were shot, where live past by. To be honest, I think this song is where he tries to win back his original audience, trying to keep it nitty and gritty but with a catchy beat for the mainstream.

11.45pm
The best track all night, had to be one of his last: "The Food" featuring Kanyeezy aka Kanye West. He did a call and reponse type thing where he did this:
Common: I walked in the crib/ got two kids/And my baby mama late...
Audience: uh oh! uh oh! uh oh!
Common: So I had to did, what I had to did/Cause I had to get...
Audience: duh-ough! duh-ough! duh-ough! Pic: There would have been about 1000 hip hop fans at the Metro. You can see Common in the foreground. Copyright DJ Ho 2006.

I've been to a lot of hip hop concerts in my 24 years on this earth, and honestly that was one of the best I've seen. In fact, I'm almost tempted to say that is the best concert i've witnessed. Mad beats and simply being able to understand his words as its sometimes hard to hear an artist rap when they perform live. The crowd was actively participating, everyone was pumped up, and he was just the consumate performer.

When he freestyled, he dropped suburbs like "newtown, Kings Cross, Campbelltown", and that was cool. I really liked it when the beats just stopped, and he did an acappella or he just did a freestyle or just talked to the audience. He talked about God, War & Peace, George Bush, just life in general.

3am
Having fed my hip hop addiction for the month, I crashed into bed.

Summary: That concert was worth every dollar I spent.
DJ Ho rating: 10 out of 10.

What's Next
Apparently Jean Grae, Bahamadia and TALIB KWELI are performing in two weeks, can't wait! And Public Enemy are coming in April. I'll be there, and you'll be with me as I describe it to you, song by song. Humanity Critic, you'd be proud.

Peace Out,

DJ Ho.