I kicked off my Labor Day weekend by attending Hot 97’s On The Reggae Tip Concert with my girl Kim of Lionqueen 192 Productions. Kim’s been inviting me to this concert for a couple of years now but I was always feeling too lazy to get up and go. Im soooo glad I went this year.
Held at the Hammerstein Ballroom in NYC the show featured Beenie Man, Damian & Stephen Marley, Cham, Mavado & Konshens among others. And as you can see, the place was jam packed.
Shaggy getting the crowd hyped.
Not only were the performances killer, but we had backstage access so were able to watch the show from stage right. The behind the scenes view of the band members, DJs, performers and audience lent a whole new vibe to the usual concert going experience. It was exciting to watch the show from the performers POV. And to see all of the scrambling and work that goes on behind the scenes to keep the night moving gave me a new appreciation for the people and work that it takes to make such an event happen.
The only downside to watching from the wings was that you ended up with primarily back and side view of the artists as they performed. But after three rum & cokes, I really didn’t care too much about that LOL. Also, we were free to move about the venue so I did manage to run down and around and catch a couple of the artists performances from the front or being interviewed on the sidelines:
Shani Kulture interviewing Shaggy backstage
Since one of our party was operating on island time (*cough, cough* Rich LOL), we missed the 1st half of the show. But we did manage to catch surprise guest, The original Don DaDa, Super Cat perform! Woy! Where dis man been? To be honest, I didn’t realize he was still alive, is so long since I’ve seen or heard of him on the scene. But it didn’t matter how long he gone, the answer riddim dropped and you know the place went wild! I was hollering and jumping with the rest, me two gun finga inna de air. But when Cat came out on stage and I had to stop & cock my head. The man had a bandana tied to his head, dessert stylee, long hair and this long, bushy beard. Not the Super Cat of my youth but still, Vineyard Style & Ghetto Red Hot a wicked chunes ya? So I shook it off and continued me dancing.
The highlight of the night for me was Damian & Stephen Marley’s performance. From the minute they hit the stage with The Mission, til done I was a mad woman. Screaming the lyrics, skanking and dancing like me ain’t got NO sense atall. It took everything in me not to run out there and become a part of the show LOL. The Marley brothers are truly talented musicians and with each song they rocked the crowd.
Damien ‘Jr. Gong’ Marley.
The last performers I caught were Beenie Man and Mavado. Beenie killed it of course. With his list of hits, him cyan do no wrong pon de stage. But Mavado….eh, I’m not a huge Mavado fan. I like a few a he chune deh. Caribbean Girls, Weh Dem a Do, Delilah. But overall I’m not that moved so I really wasn’t too into his performance. Even when he brought out Nicki Minaj for their new song Give It All To Me, though the crowd was loving them, I was ready to call it a wrap.
Overall, I had a great time. Good chunes, good friends and a few libations made for great night out. And I will mos def be back for the 2014 show. Click here for Hot 97’s video recap of the night.
Who a you all went to the show? Were you just as shocked by Super Cat’s look as I? Were you wondering how the dude waving the rasta flag throughout Damien’s set managed to do so without stopping once (I KNOW him arms was tiyyad! LOL) Which artist was just not up to snuff? Sound off and let a sista know!
