Live Notes: Heart of the City

Mary J. Blige & Jay-Z
TD Banknorth Garden
Boston, MA
Thursday, April 3, 2008

In light of the spike of commemorations surrounding the late Dr. King, the magnitude of this tour took on a greater scope. Not only are Mary & Jay two of the most bankable stars in hip-hop, but you can easily say all of entertainment. That hip-hop spawned them makes their adaptation of the American Dream even more compelling. I originally saw the dates scheduled and couldn't believe it. Easily these stars could have toured on their own with supporting acts and done just as well. Putting egos aside, they instantly created one of the biggest tours in hip-hop's history and helped further black music's reach with another hallmark achievement.

The diversity of the crowd was testament to the achievement. Honestly, the audience seemed perfectly American: half Caucasian, half not. Considering that we are in a recession, the fact that the place was filled to the rafters, whose seats cost $100 after the Ticketmaster charge was included, spoke to how celebrated these two artists have become. It was fitting that they started with "Can't Knock The Hustle", a hip-hop anthem that helped cement both of their reputations.

Mary has fully embraced her role as a diva and it suits her fine. For most of the evening her eyes were hidden behind sunglasses, perfectly framed by her signature blond hair. Jay left Mary after "Hustle" and she quickly bounced through a medley of her old favorites. Since it was a hip-hop celebration she began with her part of "You're All I Need", her duet with Method Man. Jay popped up for a bit of "Real Love", but Mary seemed to get her fire towards the end of the medley, when she took her time with some of her slower romantic fare. When she did her mini Anita Baker lesson on "Love No Limit", you felt a change in her force.

She then transitioned into items from her newest offering "Growing Pains". You could tell she was proud of her efforts and she should be. It was evident that most of the crowd agreed with her. This is the point where the women forgot where they were and swayed and serenaded in the aisles as if they were in their showers. Mary barged through "Feels Like A Woman" which eventually lead to "Stay Down" and church was officially in session. After an extended interlude, Mary re-emerged and preached her sermon in the form of "No More Drama". She paced back and forth with the ferocity of a televangelist, and pretty much everyone was converted. One member of my party described it as "hypnotic". I couldn't disagree.

She continued through the ballads ("Not 'Gon Cry", "Your Child", and a group sing-along of "I'm Going Down") and used the momentum to finish with more of her upbeat tracks. After "Family Affair", the DJ put on "Flashing Lights" and Mary and her two dancers did the poses that got the crowd in a frenzy for "Work That". By "Be Without You", even the hard-nosed guys mostly there for Jay were standing in appreciation.

After a transition video where they both fawned over the other, it was Jay's turn. Just like Mary, he seems really proud of his latest work. He started his set with items from "American Gangster", his inspiration from the film. He then tumbled into his set, which was a madcap mash of his hits. There was a section when he seemed the most alive and it was also concurrent with when the live band was most on display. The gospel chop drummer breathed new life into "Show Me What You Got" and when the guitars hit on "99 Problems", it seemed as though they were highlighting them one by one. Predictably, Mary came out to assist on "Song Cry" and did well.

After that Jay went into an extended run of his 90s hits that mostly lacked pizazz. Yet as unenthused as he seemed at times, he still had amazing crowd connection. My crew looked like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the midst of the Garden, the sole objectors to raising our diamonds in the sky. But the night was still enjoyable.

And that was it. After "Encore", they finished with "Heart of the City" which included a reggae drop that let Mary prove she can still move with the best of them. And that was it. The lights came on and no one complained, but for some reason that was okay. The diva and the established hustler had done their deed and moved on to the next date. And it's cool that they owe us nothing more. Somehow for most of the crowd, this was the event to brag about for a while and its really cool that such a diverse crowd has such value of this type of event. I want Jay to do more inspired sets with the bands and I secretly hope that Mary goes to her jazz roots and tours smaller venues. But if they keep doing Heart of the City, I'll go with my kids one day when they are of age.

Plea Deal: Ryde Or Die Chick

The year 2000 was a year of jubilation for many, the Lox included. Initially conscripted to serve in Bad Boy's army by the lure of the Notorious, they surely felt played by Mr. Combs suspect tactics. The lead single off their lone Bad Boy offering was based on a Rod Stewart sample and featured more shiny suits in the accompanying video. The only time they seemed appealing was on the title track "Money, Power, Respect" featuring DMX, with whom they shared management.

That management also happened to be the Ruff Ryder team and they somehow freed them from Diddyland to get them onto their own label. The next offering had the Lox sounding more comfortable, but funny enough they didn't shed the slick production more often linked with Mr. Combs. "Ryde or Die Bitch" featured cute labelmate Eve and a poppy beat by Timbaland. Maybe they weren't in shiny suits but this was made for the radio.

Still the Lox show why for some reason they still manage to be appealing to this day. The Lox never come off as consistently grimy to me. If not ghetto, they seem more working class. They still present the rough edges, but there is a charm about them. They know better. But they wallow in the muck anyway. And with the slightly Latin breeze blowing through this beat, they are free to kick mud around after the rain shower.

Each member runs off a mixture of ideal scenarios and attributes of their dream lady, let's call her Ghetto Madonna. She definitely is resourceful ("Got the brand new spring Prada shit in the fall"), curvaceous ("Don't matter what size panties, fitting her small"), and pretty much a freak of the highest nature ("Gave me head cause the movie was wack (Yes the beat stops here for emphasis), word"). She also shows at least a working knowledge of violent measures necessary for the drug game, but that's neither here nor there.

Its all silly fun. Enjoy a throwback to when gas was still around $1.50 and all those cars in the video seemed okay to own.

Notes: The Roots - Game Theory

Music is a very compelling subject. For most, music is the touchstone that conjures memories of where one's been and where one hopes to go. Even the snootiest of music lovers will hear Britney Spears in 25 years and remember where they were and what they were doing when "Toxic" was burning it's way up and down the charts.

The implanting for music I assume happens somewhere around puberty I figure, although considering the kids at my job, the age might be getting younger. Anyhow, music tends to parallel one's life. During youth, the more energetic music tends to dominate but as you mature, the introspective tunes tend to hold more weight. Eventually, and sadly, it seems that music falls out of favor once you're older. It's like an afterthought. I think that part of the reason that the Stones, Springsteen, Dylan, and U2 are still popular is that for the adults that purchase them it presents a nostalgic ticket to their past. The youth they once used to inhabit.

Music has always been a part of my house. I knew how to flip the vinyl and land the needle by kindergarten. I played cassettes so hard that you could hear the tape screaming to be stopped. So when I was rebaptized into music in adolescence it was natural. And a seminal group in that immersion was The Roots.

I can't remember exactly how I found them though it definitely occurred because I became the biggest Tribe Called Quest fan overnight. I did amazing research about my new found love of hip-hop and found the Native Tongues, who the Roots were supposed to be the new purveyors of. So I picked up there most recent album of the time "illadelph halflife." Looking back I remember not really vibing to it as much as the Tribe or De La Soul I had picked up. But I liked it enough to get there preceding album "Do You Want More?" That was it. And now I was dedicated to the Roots. When Tribe announced their departure, and De La disappearing into the sunset, the Roots were my best hope. Since then I've been to so many Roots concerts I lost count and I've never been disappointed.

So what is with this long diatribe before the actual commentary on the album? Well like I said, music parallels life. And I kind of see the Roots as paralleling me. They've always been excellent. The critics always knew. But they've also been ambitious. And they've missed the mark a couple of times. ?uestlove, the band's musical director, has said that he basically mailed in "The Tipping Point" , their last album, and even admits it was a B-. They have had loads of musical ideas that sometimes they shouldn't have touched, or not committed to so hard. And I feel that about myself at times. Ambitious. Maybe overcommitted. Not prioritizing too well.

But "Game Theory" is a masterpiece. When I first got it, I was disappointed it was only 13 tracks. "Tipping" was only 10. They used to pack as much as they could on there. But maybe they realized that simple fact might have been holding them back. These 13 tracks are the most cohesive thing I have had the privilege to listen to ever. Every moment sounds like it was perfectly tied to the next one, even across tracks.

The music is darker, but honestly I don't think I've heard them better. And I noted this when I first heard them during their Radio City Music Hall concerts and even when I saw them in a crappy venue in Boston two months ago. The music is not all the same but they don't overstep their abilities either. Even though, it's a darker tone, your head still snaps. And you want extended breaks just to listen to the music.

Lyrically, I haven't heard Black Thought this good, well, ever. And I'm a Black Thought fan. At one point he rhymes "you're mesmerized by the calm nonchalantness." I'm not sure that nonchalantness is a word but I totally understood what he was saying. Isn't that what an emcee is supposed to do? Jay-Z is so good because he makes even drug dealing so vivid that farmers in Wyoming feel like they've been on the block. Thought does the same damn thing. Over the whole album he seems spry and agile, like there is nothing that will knock him off his game. The return of Malik B must have helped some. Since he left the group due to drug problems, I've missed him a lot. And I didn't realize how much he was missed till I heard his rapid fire flow on the track "Game Theory." Peedi Peedi also is amazing in his guest spot on the track "Long Time." Throughout, even though the content is darker, speaking about the sad state of affairs in the world today, they don't sound bogged down. Thought deals with the government and mourning all with the same aplomb and candor. It's amazing.

This album is indicative of why I even listen to music so hard in the first place. Not only can music take you somewhere, but its quality to perfectly identify with who you are is also ethereal. You may not like hip-hop but this album will be looked back upon on some VH1 special in 25 years as a turning point in music. Yeah I said it, and I meant it.