“It’s just different”
That’s exactly what it felt like as I sat mid bowl of the Barclays Center in Brooklyn experiencing history. The excitement from Jay Z’s presence alone made the night truly spectacular. Jay came out with “Where I’m From” holding up Brooklyn from the start, and hearing how crazy the crowd went, it was easy to tell Brooklyn was definitely in the house.
This photo above from http://www.
The feel was raw Hip Hop, the lights incredible, the energy was high and you could feel it from every corner of the brand new arena. Jay smiled often, as if to bask in his own glory, that he was apart of this moment in history too; it was something you could feel from every song he performed. He did classics like “Dead Presidents” and “99 Problems” then took some time the visit the legendary Reasonable Doubt performing “Brooklyn’s Finest” to a rowdy crowd. He did a lot of his older songs, focusing on what his fans wanted to hear but he took some time to do his verse on “Clique” yelling out “Brooklyn! Brooklyn! Brooklyn!” instead of the catchy chorus. In the middle of the show he brought out Memphis Bleek and they blessed the crowd with a couple tracks. When the beat of “Empire State” dropped the red, white and blue lights covered the crowd as Jay yells “sing my ****” and seemingly everyone’s hands holding their diamonds up high.
Jay took a few moments to talk to the crowd about his journey to make this arena Brooklyn’s own. He explained how nine years ago sitting in 40/40 he was brought the idea of bringing a team to Brooklyn and he said, “tell me where to start I’m with it”. He also took some time to talk about following your dreams, seems cliché, though trust with Jay involved it was anything but. “Anybody out there with a dream, don’t let nobody hold you back…I’m no different than anyone of you with a dream, as I stand here…I’m living proof that dreams do come true”. He took some time to mention the people of power in the country, and how they don’t want to see us get to where he did, that they wish for us not to dream as big because they won’t know how to control us. They fear us. This left me with so much more respect for him, that in the middle of his sold out concert, crazy as it sounds, I felt like he was talking to just me. I left Barclays Center knowing exactly why Jay Z is one of the greatest.
What’s on my replay:
· Diamond’s - Rihanna
· So Many Girls – DJ Drama, Wale, Tyga & Roscoe Dash
· Get Free ColeWorld- J. Cole
· Remember You – Wiz Khalifa ft. The Weekend
· Blue Whale – Frank Ocean
- Alyssa Jones
No comments:
Post a Comment