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MOS DEF / YASIIN BEY IN CONCERT:
As one of hip hop's most revered lyricists, Mos Def never ceases to surprise and impress with his dexterous flow. On stage, he cuts a stylish figure, effortlessly displaying his wordsmithing skills, charismatic energy, and boundless positivity while paying tribute to cultural icons like Mohammed Ali. Whether performing with longtime collaborator Talib Kweli or rolling solo, Mos makes sure crowds are bumped, grinded, and fully educated in the "fundamental mathematics" of his intricate verses, laying it down as only he can on tracks like "Ms. Fat Booty" and "Body Rock." With a highly anticipated new album in the works, Mos will treat fans to another dose of cerebral hip hop on his 2014 tour dates.
BACKGROUND SNAPSHOT:
Dante Terrell Smith, best known by his stage names Mos Def and Yasiin Bey, is a Brooklyn-born rapper, actor, and producer. His hip hop career began in the early '90s with local alt-rappers Da Bush Babees and De La Soul, with whom he collaborated before releasing his debut single "Universal Magnetic." In 1998, he teamed up with Talib Kweli to form the duo Black Star, whose debut LP is considered a contemporary classic and major influence over the "backpack rap" scene. As a solo artist, Mos Def has released four albums to critical and commercial acclaim, firmly establishing his reputation as one of the genre's most stylish lyricists. Reuniting with Talib Kweli for several highly anticipated Black Star shows in 2014, Mos has fans eagerly awaiting more as rumors of new material mount.
FANS WHO BOUGHT TICKETS SAY:
"This was a dreamy, uplifting, soul-satisfying, freaky, funky time well spent!"
"I've always wanted to see MOS DEF/Yasiin Bey in concert. He didn't disappoint... Great energy..!"
"Mos is 100% in the moment and his show was an intimate experience with a nearly sold out crowd of true Mos Def fans. Great ambiance, music, flow -- and who knew Mos could step and dance like he did."
The entire show was great! Erykah's set with the Cannabinoids was excellent, mixing some new tunes with remixes of her best stuff. Mos rocked the show with music from his past two CD's, some old school rap, and a killer tribute to Michael Jackson. If you have a chance, do not miss this show!
As soon as I walked into this theater, I had such a beautiful feeling. Everyone was so friendly. Erikah badu was amazing. She really knows how to rock out. She's got such great confidence and she's so elelgant, yet she will turn around with her lyrics and get you out of your seat. Blow you away! Mos def, man..he is just as amazing. I could watch him rap/flow for forever..and with those beats man?! Wonderful show!!
The sound was amazing even from the back row at the intimate setting of Davies Symphony hall! Good crowd and great music!
love badu's presense, and the new songs were awesome
The Show was amazing. Mos Played all new stuff, and Erykah rocked it raw. I can't wait to see her again!
Before seeing his show, I knew Mos Def is an accomplished rapper and actor, but after the show, he has my vote as the best rapper of all time. His beats are unmatched by others, including Snoop, Dr. Dre, Jay-Z, Biggie, Tupac, etc.
First of all, Erykah and Mos will always be on my top lists for greatest hip hop artists. I believe that they both have their own unique style and their lyrics are just dope. Erykah rocked it last night with her crew and she was just on point with her delivery. Mos on the other hand, didn't really do it for me, which was dissapointing. As much as i tried to connect with him last night, he just wasn't giving that vibe. I didn't feel him at all...which was too bad because like I said, I love his lyrics. I will probably continue to buy his records and listen to them forever, but as far as seeing him live, last night was probably the last. I spoke to other friends who saw him in the past, and surprisingly they told me the same thing. Sorry Def!!!
I was hoping i'd see some orchestration, some action on the stage. but there wasn't much to see at the show. Badu continues to engage her audience, and put some new twists to some of her old records...and of course threw in some covers. nice. Behind her was her posse, a few guys on keys, tables, or computers. not much to watch. things got worse with Mos Def. I was stoked to see a drum kit set up, and MD opened his set banging on a couple of them and on the mike. That was it for the drums. from there on out it was him and a mike, two DJs behind him. not much to see. Yet plenty of opportunity. sometimes his performance was dancing to a record. Hey, i can do that in my living room. If you're gonna feature someone else singing, how about having that singer there in stead of just spinning her record? if you're gonna do music, how about some musicians? No background vocalists, no drums, no keys, no nothin. Boring. People started leaving the show two songs into MD's set. I wasn't far behind. Hopefully he'll put on a better show in Oaktown. Bring earplugs. charge your iphone and download some games, just in case.
If it weren't for Erykah and the Cannabinoids I would have asked for my money back. I'm a Mos Def fan, but I was extremely disappointed in his performance. A lot of people were hyped during and after Erykah/Cannabinoids' performance - which was amazing - but lost all enthusiasm half-way through Mos' set. A lot of people started sitting down and then getting up and leaving. I expected to get the equivalent of his performance at Yoshi's in Oakland, CA which was beyond dope. He just wasn't working for me this time.
I was definitely there to see Erykah since I'm a huge fan of hers. She did FOUR NEW SONGS! A song that sounded like Funkadelic/Parliament, one that sounded like Outkast, a third about Lowdown Loretta Brown & the 4th was 'Jump In The Air' which I'm assuming will be on her forthcoming 'New Amerykah Part Two: The Return Of The Ankh'. She also did some cool new renditions of older songs too that were fun & inspired. She was with her new band The Cannabinoids, who are all DJs so they all had laptops, turntables & some had keyboards. They did back up singing/rapping as well but there were no female backups. They were all futuristic in their sound which brought some needed fresh air to her standards. EB was in top form! I'm so glad I got to see her so quickly again after seeing her in 6/09!!!! Mos was also incredible. He played drums while rapping on a few songs and he rocked a MJ tribute segment where he did 'Rock W/You' & 'Billie Jean' while sporting a glittery silver glove on his right hand and moonwalking w/his loafers & high water pants. He was impressive! Jay was funny, but talked way too much which broke any momentum he built in the songs. He kept doing accapella raps too which is fine once but it just ruined any groove to his set. He had his mike up too loud too so you I couldn't understand alot of what he was saying. He had a good DJ but didn't use him enough. I wanted to hear more of his songs. Jay brought the 5 star rating down to 4 stars unfortunately.
Okay, so if you love Mos Def, go. That's the only reason to go, really. There were parts of his set that lagged, but dude rocked out for the most part. One detraction for me was that he was only backed up by a pair of DJs. The man deserves a band behind him. Mos Def and the beauty of Davies Hall warrant the (2.5) three stars. I didn't rate it any higher for a few reasons: The Cannabinoids and Jay Electronica - snoozefest. Plus, Ms. Badu has descended into a very experimental phase. I'm down with trying new things, but most of it was just too much. I haven't even gotten to the 2 hour delay! The show was so supposed to start at 7:30 - we didn't get out of there until after midnight.
Excellent performance. A must see tour!! Erykah Badu and Mos Def are definitely at the top of their game. New deliveries of their classics and bomb performances of their newly and soon to be released songs. Jay Electronica gave us a dynamite preview of what's to come. No doubt that Mos Def and Ms. Badu will be inducted to the hip hop hall of fame. Those of us who were at the SF performance enjoyed the show at a fantastic venue. Don't sleep. This is BOMBASTIC tour!!!!
Amazing show with Mos Def and crew. I would definitely recommend for any hiphop fans.
Amazing show! It was at Davies Symphony so the venue was stupendous but regardless, what a great performance. Erykah got all digital and looked awesome...remixed some of her old stuff - gave it a fresh flair. Mos Def threw back with the floods and loafers -- sooo hot. PLus he even got all MJ on the moonwalk and even took some drumming out the closet. Loved it! GO SEE THIS SHOW.
the sound at symphony hall was wrong for this kind of music couldn't hear a word Mos Def didn't come on til 3 hours after the start of the show we couldn't stay there any longer! boring boring boring
Seriously - it was wild. Jay Electronica was hillarious, Erykah & mos ROCKED. Venue was FANTASTIC - Mos on the drums & singing at the same time - best thing ever. As if his energy wasn't high enough as-is, he got SOOO excited when he was playing the drums & took it up a couple notches. AND he moonwalked. and sang billie jean. while wearing Erykah's sparkly silver glove. 'nuff said
This was an amazing show. Amazing/ beautiful venue. Amazing/ beautiful performances. Jay Electronia was the opening. His lyrics were incredible, and he was hilarious. Erykah Badu, who is the person I CAME to see, did her set with The Cannabinoids-- their whole performance was PERFECT. Erykah has wonderful energy, and the entire theatre was perfect to accomodate that. Finally, Mos Def did a wonderful set. Loved his tribute to Michael Jackson.
I was really pleased with Badu's performance and the opener Jay Electronica was not bad. Mos Def seems to have regressed. His concerts, like every album he puts out, have gotten worse. Stevie Wonder syndrome? Most of his set had no continuity nor any enunciation of words. Singing hooks is one thing, but song after song of him singing is horrible. Mos, you used to be an MC! What happened?
Was looking forward to seeing Erykah Badu live for some jazzy groovy beats and an excellent backing band. Instead? We get 7 guys with turntables and drum machines turning her songs into unrecognizable garbage. If I wanted to hear scratching and out of time drum machines, I would go to a crappy club on any day of the week. If I wanted to hear a fantastic singer with a great live band, I thought that was Badu. Unfortunately, I was wrong and it's likely she lost a lot of fans on this tour, along with us. Mos Def did his thing, but do they really need to blast a symphony hall like they do a warehouse? Couldn't really hear the tracks and still MUCH preferred him with The Roots then a couple of guys playing CDs. HUGE overpriced disappointing waste of time and a total let down.
Erykah Badu and The Cannabinoids... oh man... THEY KILLED IT.