When East meets Kanye West: Kanyeezy @ Hordern Pavillion

When the taxi pulled in @ Fox studio's, the line was already curled around the block. I didn't believe it til I saw the throng of thousands of people stuck in the cattle like gates which funnel people in. The line stretched as far as the eye could see. The atmosphere was building up - scalpers were working the crowd, there was a buzz in the air, ladies and gents in the spot looking extra fly.

Finally, I got into the Hordern at 7.30pm but the place was still pretty empty. The warmup acts were Aussie RNB acts Chen'elle and Daniel Mereweather, who were entertaining but the crowd booed them after they finished.

At about 9pm the lights went out, and it was pitch black. Amongst a bright blue light and a smoky stage, Kanye emerged like an angel from the clouds. He started off with his second biggest hit "Diamonds from Sierra Leone" which utilises the Shirley Bassey line "Diamonds are forever". I couldn't even see Kanye West clearly. To be honest, I wasn't feeling the first two tracks that Kanye performed. He came out flat and I just couldn't feel the vibe. I recall that I couldn't see jack because the lights were just flashing red like a Target sale.

I wasn't the only one that couldn't see as Kanye admitted later that he had tripped over, sprained his ankle and had it taped up inbetween the second and third song. He actually came out and apologized for the inability to perform at 100% and remedied the pain by drinking a glass of Hennessy.


College Dropout

Kanye took us back to his first LP: College dropout. When he first emerged, he was a breath of fresh air. The songs were different, the beats were funky, and it was the resurgence of the soul sound. He played "All Falls Down" and the crowd went nuts. Then he hit us with the crowd pleaser "The Workout Plan", where he talks about women who are groupies, using men to define success.

But before his magnum opus, real heads knew him as the beatmaker/producer behind Talib Kweli, Jay-Z, Slum Village. Real heads appreciated him back in the day so he dropped vignettes from Talib's "Just to get by", Ludacris "Stand up", and Hova's "Encore".

This then led to a shortened version of "Spaceship". :
"I've been workin' this graveshift and I ain't made sh*t/
I wish I could buy me a spaceship and fly past the sky"


Late Registration

Other mad tracks that he performed include "Drive Slow" which features Paul Wall, which is one of my favourite tracks on his followup Late Registration album. He also hits us with the song "Roses", which he performed whilst sitting down. There was just so much conviction and emotion in his performance, like he had lived through those very words:

"I know it's past visiting hours/
But can I please give her these flowers?/
The doctor dont wanna take procedures/
He claimed my heart can't take the anesthesia/
It'll send her body into a seizure"

But I think one of the best songs he did all night was "Hey Mama". The performance was really off the hook, and I loved the way he did the "aarghs" in the song. Oh, and "Get'em High" featuring Talib Kweli was also done to perfection - I love the beat in this song, in fact I listen to it on a semi-daily basis. I've actually heard Talib Kweli perform this track as well. If only they could perform live together - that'd be CRAZY!!!!!!

Backup, Backup

As always, the backup a performer has really enhances or deflates the show. Kanye's backup singers were just so good. Tony Williams has a crazy voice and he really showed it off on "Heard'Em Say" and that chick had a heavenly voice as well. Normally right, a singer has a band to back them up - Kanye had a strings section! That was so cool. All the band members had violins, and cellos! I've never seen anything like it.

And before I forget, his tour DJ is A-Trak, who is well credentialled as a member of the Invisible Scratch Pikelz. He's also won all three DJ battle crowns as well, plus I saw him perform live at Chequers @ Mandarin Club on Saturday.

Wrapping up

As a performer, Kanye is very good. He knows how to work the stage, improvise and just simply entertain. Since he tripped over, he played two extra songs. He rapped "Diamonds from Sierra Leone" over the beat from a Verb song, which really shows his versatility.

The moment of the evening though, was the last track he performed: "Touch the Sky". Other people say it was "Jesus Walks" but I was in the bathroom when it started playing, and i ran back as soon as I heard the "Bom, Bom, Ba Da Bom" intro! It was just an awesome finish to a great night. And everyone (and I mean everyone) raised their hands to touch the sky as he said:

"I gotta testify, come up in the spot looking extra fly/
For the day I die, I'mma touch the sky!"

Rated R

I give it a 9.5 out of 10. I'm a bit restricted since I gave Common 10!

Peace Out,

DJ Ho.