Thursday, April 24, 2008

It's Gonna be a Hip Hop Spring/Summer.


Here's a brief rundown of upcoming hip hop shows in the NYC area. I was getting tired of hearing about shows the day of or the day after. Looks like there's some good shit on the horizon. The Friday night EPMD with the rest of them looks DOPE. And Nokia's one of the dopest venues.

I saw Wu last Wed. at Irving Plaza. Had no pics so I didn't want to post. Everybody was there except for Meth. Ghost showed up an hour late and left an hour early. Not a great show. For such accomplished artists, they could have provided a much better performance. Going to shows for years, I'm used to artists not really giving a fuck about the audience and lacking professionalism most of the time. It's one thing if the show costs $20, but once I'm shelling out $60 plus, I expect to get my money's worth. Wishful thinking. You can say Wu's an aberration with the logistics of getting all of them on the stage at the same time, and the fact that they all showed up is a feat in itself. But fuck that, I want quality. When U-God has a set for 20 minutes, something's wrong. On to the shows...

April 25- Fri- Nokia Theater - EPMD, Naughty By Nature, Lords of the Underground and O.C. Tix are $35 plus those ludicrous ticketmaster fees. Hopefully Treach is there, after being pulled over in his Hummer with a bullet proof vest on. The flyer reminds me of all the Tramps show back in the 90's.

April 28- Mon- Estelle- Highline Ballroom- $15- advance tix sold out- limited amount at door day of show. Estelle's that chick from the UK that's been getting buzz from the track with Kanye. I have no opinion.

April 30- Wed.- Southpaw in Brooklyn- A Lupas Charity Event with: OC, Jeru Tha Damaja, Ugp & The Lordz...- Lordz of BK?? Hosted by the one and only, Sasha Jenkins (ego trip) $10



May 5- Mon.- Knitting Factory- Brand Nubian (Grand Puba, Sadat X & Lord Jamar), 88-Keys (debut vocal performance!), Fresh Daily, DJ Lindsey (Negroclash) + hosted by John Robinson (Lil Sci/Scienz of Life)- $15 in advance- $20 at door.

May 7- Wed- SOB's- Pharoah Monch- $18 in adv, $22 day of show

May 14- Wed- Knitting FactoryGong Battle East Coast Heats - Hosted by Lord Sear (shade 45/sirius radio) and DJ Fat Fingaz. Music provided by DJ Boogie Blind (X-ecutioners) & Joell Ortiz- $15. Worth is to see Joell Ortiz.

May 14- Wed- SOB's- Lupe Fiasco- Sold Out- but they'll be scalping.

May 20- Tues- SOB's- Kidz in the Hall- $12 in advance, $15 day of. I admit I haven't heard anything they've done, but they've been getting mad press, and the bloggers love them.



May 27- Tues- SOB's- Collie Buddz- $18 in advance, $22 day of show. If you're not up on this dude, find his shit and give it a listen. The album's a dope.

June 1- Sun- Giants Stadium- Hot 97 Summer Jam. Featuring all your favorite artists. Expensive.



June 4- Wed- Nokia Theater- Paid Dues show featuring Rakim, GZA, Blackalicious, Murs & 9th Wonder, Buckshot of Boot Camp Clik, Supernatural & Scratch, Kidz in the Hall, and Yak Ballz. Tix are $39.50 plus fees.

June 11- Wed- Knitting Factory- Black Sheep, DJ Spinna, DCQ (Medina Green), hosted by Livingroom Johnston- $12 in advance, $17 at door

June 13- Fri- Irving Plaza aka Fillmore NY- Fresh Rhymes & Video Tape Tour ft. Dilated Peoples- $20 adv., $25 DOS

June 14- Sat- Knitting Factory- The Beatnuts- tix $17 in advance, $20 at door

July 17- Thur- Arrested Development- Highline Ballroom- $18 advance, $20 day of

July 18- Fri- Central Park Summerstage- Video Music Box 25th Anniversary. No roster yet, but Uncle Ralph should be able to get some major artists for this. FREE.

July 25- Fri- Highline Ballroom- Slick Rick WITH LIVE BAND and Kidz in the Hall- $18 adv., $20 day of. Not feeling the live band.



July 27- Sun- Jones Beach Amphitheatre- A Tribe Called Quest, Nas, Mos Def, Pharcyde, De La Soul, Rakim, Method Man, Redman, Ghostface, Raekwon, Dead Prez, Murs, Immortal Technique and others- Hosted by B Real, Supernatural, and Scratch. Check to see which artists will be performing. Doubt they will all show up. Wouldn't mind seeing Tribe. Pre-sale tickets will be available May 14th - 16th via www.guerillaunion.com, and then to the general public on May 17th.

Next time I'll provide links to the venues and tickets. For now, hopefully this should suffice. I didn't provide addresses or phone numbers, but a little google search should answer all questions.

Keep your ears and eyes open for the Brooklyn Hip Hop Festival and the free NYC park shows throughout the boroughs. Last year they had a crazy lineup.

2 comments:

buckemdown said...

Good looks on the very informative post. You know I've all up given up on hip-hop shows a long time ago - too many 9pm shows starting at 2am - but there are at least one or two on here tha interest me. The EPMD/Naughty/LOTG/OC tomorrow night sounds kinda hot - too bad I'll be getting my swine on at Wildwood BBQ (don't forget your camera How). Might actually be legitimately interested in the Paid Dues show - Buckshot one of my favorite all-time Mc's; throw in Rakim, GZA and 9th wonder, and you've got a show that may be worth the risk. Also, Rock the Bells - an outdoor venue definitely takes away from the hate of a tardy show. And Lupe sold-out?? Somebody please tell me what I'm missing here...

Unknown said...

Way to keep it thoro How. Nice little line-ups going on. Tomorrow night sounds best, but I think I might have to hit Slick despite the band. Never seen him live, and it's time to see the jewelry in person.