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They soldiered through sound problems. They played to a half-full house of tired CMJers at a venue off the festival’s beaten path. But Yo Majesty! still gave about 150 people a performance that will undoubtedly close out the CMJ Music Marathon with a lasting memory. It may not have been as uninhibited (their performances often end in topless bedlam) as fans are accustomed to, but Yo Majesty! still brought their brand of sex-laden hip-hop to the Blender Theater with confidence and gusto. Mugging for a line of cameras at every moment, MCs Shunda K and Jwl B powered through a quick set of caffeinated rap odes to sex, partying, and passion. Constantly arguing with the venue’s sound man, no volume dial could have turned their electro beats up loud enough. “This is a party, our name is up outside the building,” Shunda K barked during the early part of the set. “We’re not here to sing some karaoke, so let’s turn those tracks up.”
In a hip-hop performance, if you can’t work the crowd with your bravado and beats, you’ve got no business being on stage. Luckily for Yo Majesty!, the duo has the requisite braggadocio in spades. If you weren’t into it, they’d find you and get you there. A Yo Majesty! show partially hindered by unmitigable circumstances would still serve as a peak for most bands, and they proved to the crowd why their name and no others were on Blender’s marquee.
