So this is why I was doing BMX bike tricks in 20 feet of water on my way to see Kendrick’s taping at ACL Live. How many times in life do you get the opportunity to see a legend in the making, in an intimate venue, for free? But I know Austin and I knew that I’d be the only Black guy not on stage in the building, so I didn’t dress as hip hop as I normally would. I didn’t want to end up turning into Samuel Bland (that was a Sandra Bland joke-too soon?). So I dressed up like I was on my way to business dinner and when I heard this exchange between an usher and a random older white lady, I knew I made the right choice OWL "Oh what a crowd! Who’s performing tonight?" Usher (not the singer) "Kendrick Lamar, he’s a rapper" This was followed by a blank stare, the lady covertly clutching her purse, and her slowly walking away.
The place was electric as everyone was A. happy they survived the tornado from earlier in the day and B. excited to hear something of substance in the rap game for a change. I’m sorry but listening to J. Cole talk about his first time having sex doesn’t really do it for me. I remember my first time and it barely warranted an interlude, let alone a single.
But anyway, Kendrick knows how to put on a show. He came out with a band and got the party started with For Free. He spit this lyrical spoken word so flawlessly that it immediately let any critics of hip hop in the building know, that not just anyone can get on stage and do what he does.
He then followed this with a mix of songs from his Black power album To Pimp a Butterfly and his debut effort Good Kid, m.A.A.D. City. The crowd was feeling it but it wasn’t until he broke out Bitch Don’t Kill My Vibe that it went from performance art to a sing along. Now there were four teenagers standing next to me and my buddy who, for whatever reason, each had a hairstyle that represented every phase Justin Bieber has gone through in his life. And it’s because of this, and the fact they were on Snapchat for the majority of the show, that all the old people in the building started hating on them.
But my buddy and I decided to befriend them and we found out the reason why they were on Snapchat. Sadly it wasn’t because of naked pictures of Becky, it was because they thought all of the old people weren't jumping around and dancing as much as they should have been. Now I could have replied, "It’s because they’ve been working for 40+ hours this week and are perhaps a little tired" But dammit, the kids were right! This is Kendrick! Go home and watch reruns of Night Court if you don’t want to dance.
Well someone must have heard me because once he broke out m.A.A.D. City, the show went from being a sing along to an underground hip hop party in late 80’s Brooklyn. I guess just picture a bunch a Black people wearing white face (now THAT’S a sight). He tore through the powerful and moving "u", King Kunta, the popular "I", and brought the house down with The Blacker the Berry.
He was supposed to follow that with Mortal Man, a song in which my buddy predicted would be the return of Tupac. But the crowd had other ideas. Everyone in the building started chanting loudly "We Gon Be Alright" over and over again. So much so, that Kendrick had no choice but to give the people what they wanted. And once he did, the entire place erupted! Alright is a song that everyone can connect with and you could certainly feet that energy as each lyric was rapped right along with Kendrick during what was essentially the show’s closer.
By the time it was over, the Bieber look-a-likes appeared to enjoy themselves and I am more than certain that one of two future Biebers were conceived in the dark corners somewhere.
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