Days after it was staged at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, Port-of-Spain, the Evolution of Sound Concert is still on the tips of many tongues. In fact, it is being dubbed as one of the best shows to take place on local soil for quite some time. More than 10, 000 reggae and hip-hop fans braved last Saturday's inclement weather to take in two musical geniuses in the reggae and hip-hop genres.
Known to the world as Junior Gong and Nas, the artistes displayed a rare on-stage chemistry, and delivered what could only be described as a world-class show. The two performers had patrons lapping up every bit of their spirited performances, and even after a two-hour stint on stage, fans, though thoroughly satisfied, said they would have openly welcomed another hour of the dynamic duo.
It was about 12.35 am when Nas, whose real name is Nasir Jones, and Damian "Junior Gong" Marley made their appearance on stage. Wasting no time, they began their performance with the song, As We Enter, a track from their collaborative album, Distant Relatives. The artistes are currently on tour to promote the album, which was released in May this year, and features guest appearances by Stephen Marley, Dennis Brown and K'naan.
The crowd showed their appreciation with loud cheers and some fans even sang along word for word. The duo followed with other tracks from the album, including Strong Will Continue, Count Your Blessings and Tribal War, before delving into some of their solo hits. Again the audience responded with thunderous applause. With dreadlocks almost touching the floor of the stage, Marley, accompanied by two female back-up singers and a seemingly tireless "flag man," who waved the rastafarian banner throughout the entire performance, delivered songs like More Justice, Hey Girl, and Beautiful, featuring American R&B singer Bobby Brown.
Up next was Nas, who sent hip-hop lovers into a frenzy when he sang Nas Is Like, Hip-Hop Is Dead, Hate Me Now and One Mic. Nas and Gong then reunited onstage to finish their set with a few more songs from their album, which fuses hip hop, reggae and African music genres. With a salute and words of appreciation for the crowd's positive reaction, Marley and Nas made their exit at about 2.30 am.
Following their performances, both artistes were presented with plaques in recognition of their contributions to Caribbean and African music.
Taking it in stride
The event, hosted by Tri-Star Promotions in collaboration with Icon Bliss and Global United, also featured reggae singer Jah Cure, who came on stage about 40 minutes after the main acts. Cure, who was christened Siccature Alcock, did his best to please patrons. He had little luck, however, as many of them had already begun filing out of the venue shortly after he began his set. It was not that he did not give a commendable performance, but truth be told, it would have proved a difficult task for almost any other artiste, after such scintillating performances by Junior Gong and Nas.
Taking it in stride, though, Jah Cure sang some of his hits, including Divide and Rule, You'll Never Find, and Unconditional Love. He thanked patrons for "showing me love," and with a promise to return to T&T "very soon," he made his exit at 4 am to a rapidly decreasing crowd. Earlier, local acts such as the Makamillion Family, Positive, and Orange Sky entertained the crowd and paved the way for a memorable show.
Promoter pleased
Meanwhile, the concert's event co-ordinator, Joel 'Signal To Noise' Morris told the T&T Guardian that he was very pleased with Saturday's concert. "I did not get to witness a lot of the show because I was backstage but still thought it was fantastic. From what I saw and the feedback from the people, I thought it was definitely one of the better concerts I've seen for the year."