Monday, August 17, 1998
Smokin’
MUSIC: The third-annual Smokin’ Grooves Tour showed
its staying power with a line-up that brought the funk back to
Los Angeles’ Universal Amphitheatre
By Tenoch Flores
Daily Bruin Contributor
"Three generations of hip-hop under one roof!"
These words coming from Public Enemy’s Chuck D lent a perfect
description to the third-annual Smokin’ Grooves Tour last
Thursday.
Sponsored in part by the House of Blues, the traveling festival
has become the premier annual hip-hop concert, featuring such names
in the past as A Tribe Called Quest, The Roots and the Brand New
Heavies.
By 7:15 p.m., an eager, diverse fan population gathered outside
the Universal Amphitheater, eager to see some of hip-hop’s biggest
names: Gang Starr, Busta Rhymes, Wyclef Jean, Cypress Hill and
Public Enemy, among others.
Newcomer and local group Black Eyed Peas opened the show with
its festive live-rap performance, displaying one of the reasons why
it has attracted a strong following as of late. Serving as an ideal
opening act, Black Eyed Peas got the crowd hyped up early, leaving
the audience very satisfied.
Soon afterward, R&B songstress-in-the-making and "special
guest" Mya came on stage, singing the chorus to her hit song
"Ghetto Superstar." An energetic performance, Mya’s set was well
received by the crowd, especially the well-choreographed dance
sequences.
The audience was full of anticipation by the time Gang Starr
took the stage. Making some of the best hip-hop for about 10 years,
the group only recently achieved mainstream attention when their
fifth album, "Moment of Truth," went gold (500,000 or more copies
sold). Consisting of Guru and the world-renowned DJ Premier, Gang
Starr was one of the acts people really came to see.
Before Guru took the stage, DJ Premier treated the audience to a
turn-table-tuning performance, one of the most beautiful sounds in
all of hip-hop.
After performing the songs "Manifest" and "Code of the Streets,"
the group went into songs from "Moment of Truth," starting with
"Work" and the smooth "Royalty." Freddie Foxx took the stage for
his much acclaimed verse in the song, "The Militia." The crowd
reacted wildly as they were sprayed with a 3-foot water gun. Ending
their show with "You Know My Steez", Gang Starr offered one of the
nights best and easily most consistent performances.
Busta Rhymes, formerly of New York’s rap group Leaders of the
New School, took the stage next and delivered one of his trademark
hyperactive performances. Joined by his group Flipmode Squad, Busta
performed the hit "Dangerous" and the party cut "Put Your Hands
Where My Eyes Can See." Maintaining a consistent, high-octane show
for about 30 minutes, Busta left the worn-out crowd to Wyclef and
Canibus.
It took Wyclef no time at all to get the crowd re-energized with
his onstage antics and ad-libbed renditions of songs such as "Stand
By Me." The captivated crowd reacted with approval as Wyclef
performed hits like "Gone ‘Til November" and "We Are Just Tryin’ To
Stay Alive."
Much to the audience’s astonishment, Canibus took the stage with
a real lion at his side, and performed "Second Round K.O.," a
stinging response to LL Cool J’s song "4,3,2,1." The crowd egged
Canibus on as he lyrically slaughtered LL Cool J (the antagonist of
the two rappers’ feud) to an eerie, monotonous beat.
The only drawback to Wyclef’s performance was its lack of
consistency. At times, as soon as the audience recognized what
Wyclef was performing, he would abruptly stop at mid-song, despite
overwhelming crowd approval.
By the time Smokin’ Grooves veteran Cypress Hill took the stage,
the atmosphere had gradually shifted to coincide with the group’s
dark melodies. B-Real joined Sen Dog, who had taken a hiatus but
never seemed to have left the group, as the two rappers exhibited
the old Cypress Hill chemistry that made their first two albums a
success. Adding to the dark ambiance with his hypnotic scratches,
DJ Muggs was accompanied by percussionist Bobo, who relentlessly
thumped on the congo drums whenever called for.
Cypress Hill later shifted the mood by playing some of their
"happier" songs, mainly the ones that deal with marijuana and its
effect on the human condition. The crowd chimed in on songs like
"Hits From The Bong," and was on their feet, seemingly inebriated
with Cypress Hill’s rhythm. The group put together one of the best
performances of the night, giving their core audience what they had
came to see as well as exciting the rest of the crowd.
The headliners of the show, Public Enemy, needed no
introduction. The audience’s reaction, however, was lukewarm at
best. Playing in Los Angeles for the first time in four years,
Public Enemy performed all the songs which made them rap legends,
such as "Fight the Power," "Can’t Truss It" and the more recent "He
Got Game," among others. Flavor Flav was up to his old antics,
entering the stage on an orange bicycle which matched his
signature, outrageous outfit. At one point, he had the stage all to
himself and performed "911 Is A Joke." Although Public Enemy
delivered an enthusiastic performance reminiscent of the group in
its prime, the crowd never immersed itself in the show, a
disturbing observation considering Public Enemy is one of the most
important groups in the history of hip-hop.
Smokin’ Grooves ’98 proved to be a success, without a single
disappointing performance. All of the artists who participated put
forth great efforts, with Wyclef and Cypress Hill gaining the
highest fan approval for their performances. In the end, Chuck D
summed the night up best when he stated that "the old school, new
school and the next school" were all represented at this year’s
concert. Photos by DERRICK KUDO/Daily Bruin
Busta Rhymes brought in the noise with his energetic set at the
Smokin’ Grooves tour.