Reviews
The 2nd Annual Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival feat. the Procussions, Big Daddy Kane, Lupe Fiasco, and Sle
Darren Ratner
10 Jul 2006It seems like just yesterday that Biz Markie was charming us with 'Just a Friend' and Slick Rick was recasting the 'Mona Lisa'. Oh, how the times have changed...
The 2nd Annual Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival feat. the Procussions, Big Daddy Kane, Lupe Fiasco, and Sleepy Brown
The 2nd Annual Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival feat. the Procussions, Big Daddy Kane, Lupe Fiasco, and Sle
City: Brooklyn, NYVenue: The Tobacco Warehouse BKNY
Date: 2006-06-24
g src="http://images.popmatters.com/bullet.gif" alt="" width="10" height="10" border="0" /> Email f" alt="" width="10" height="10" border="0" /> Emailc="http://images.popmatters.com/bullet.gif" alt="" width="10" height="10" border="0" /> Comment Oh, how the times have changed. It seems like just yesterday that Biz Markie was charming us with the unwavering squelch of "Just a Friend," British beat master Slick Rick was recasting the "Mona Lisa," and the Beastie Boys were putting white-boy rap on the map. Then there were the gold chains and shell-tops; they defined "urban" style as it began to appear on street corners against a backdrop of beat boxes and Ghetto blasters. We've come a long way. Over the course of its 25-year history, hip-hop has continued to evolve, constantly shifting thanks to everything from the stripped-down street flow of Audio Two's "Top Billin'" to the Dirty South ballistics of Juvenile. That's why the best parts of the 2nd Annual Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival -- coolly located in an abandoned tobacco warehouse underneath the picturesque Brooklyn Bridge -- are the visual representations of what hip-hop used to be, where it's going, and why shifts in creativity are so important to its survival. There's not a whole lot to be said for the festival's expensive beer and even more expensive food, which I managed, with much effort, to avoid. But there's plenty to be said for the creativity that came early in the day. Playing second, the Procussions -- a scrappy, fiercely-independent trio from Colorado Springs, Colorado (of all places) -- came out of the gate early and stood as the day's most innovative, if not best, performers.
Lupe Fiasco |
Big Daddy Kane |
The Procussions - The Storm