One Love. One Music. One people. One Movement. One Heart. One Spark. One way. One day.

(this is one of the pics i took on my phone of wiz. we were so close to him!)

Well…Rock the Bells is over with and I am officially depressed. You knew the post was coming. Yesterday I got home after one of the most ridiculous weekends of my life. It was amazing, exhausting, and completely worth everything. Imagine being on an island with some of the greatest names in hip hop for a full day. That was my life on Saturday…why is it over?

I figure I’ll give you a little review of the show from my perspective. My friend and I didn’t get to Rock The Bells until about 4 due to not understanding the NYC subway system and having to come from Queens. We missed a few of the earlier acts, but were able to see everyone we wanted. After taking the ferry over to Governors Island, you had to walk about a mile to get to where the show was. When you first go through the gates, you basically walk into what’s most likely a giant field. There was a huge merchandise booth in the center and behind that is the paid dues stage. Further to the right are multiple food and drink vendors and then the main stage. There were other vendors set up throughout the middle of the show too; Soterik (a new company that I’ll be writing about tomorrow), multiple clothing booths, etc.

When we first got there, we saw the end of Jedi Mind Tricks and what we saw from them was great. Then Brother Ali was performing on the paid dues stage. My favorite song by him is Uncle Sam Goddamn and he did it in the beginning which was nice. We kind of wandered from one stage to another earlier in the day because we wanted to make sure we saw as many people as possible. After Brother Ali, we walked over to the main stage and waited for Lauryn Hill. My opinion is that the whole show was running behind which is kind of expected when you have so many artists performing throughout the day. She came out at least a half an hour late which pissed off a lot of people. I didn’t really mind, but a lot of people were booing her. Anyway, she still has it. She sounded amazing and kept telling the crowd, “I miss you. I miss you.” I felt kind of bad for her because people weren’t really giving her a chance. I would say the best part of her performance was the reggae version of Fugee La, one of my favorite songs by The Fugees. She ended up calling some of the audience on stage and by audience I mean Jay Z, Alicia Keys, Swizz Beatz, John Legend, Beyonce, etc.

We didn’t stay for all of Lauryn because my friend and I wanted to make sure we saw all of Wiz Khalifa. He more than lived up to my expectations. I fell in love with him during those 45 minutes (ha ha…but seriously). Anna and I pushed our way really close to the stage and posted up for the show. When Wiz came out, my heart melted. He has this presence that makes you so happy; the way he laughs, his movements, his voice. He started off his performance with his verse of “Super High,” which was definitely a hit. The entire playlist was awesome. I feel like Wiz sort of kicked off the show because he was so enthusiastic and amazing. Halfway through his setlist, he took a smoke break and came back on stage. The crowd was wild and definitely digging him. I think I am biased because I love Wiz so much, but he was seriously one of my favorite artists of the day. I’m glad I got to see him before he gets big because my prediction is that he is going to blow up with his Waken Baken tour.

 So after Wiz (and feeling extremely depressed), we went back to the main stage and pretty much posted up here for the rest of the night. Tribe Called Quest was a huge hit and killed it. They sounded like they had never disbanded and had the crowd loving them. The Large Professor and Busta Rymes also made surprise appearances. After Tribe, Wu Tang came out. They were unreal. By this point, the entire crowd was at the main stage and in front of me, hundreds of people were throwing up the W. I don’t think anyone wanted them to end (even though we were excited for Snoop). But Wu just had this energy (and everyone from Wiz Khalifa on) that drew you in and made you want to break it down to some real hip hop.

At this point in the show, we had been standing for about 8 hours. As I’d said, the show was running behind. Snoop Dogg was originally scheduled to be done by 11:45 PM, but I don’t think he even came on until after 11:00 I’m not positive of the time because I fell asleep sitting up while I was waiting for him to come on. I was so exhausted from all the traveling and standing and dancing, but I didn’t want to miss him. I woke up with a jolt as the music started bumping and Snoop came on. He killed it too (obviously).

As soon as that old school Snoop started, the crowd went wild. I personally feel that Snoop was kind of cheated. Being at the end of the show means that a lot of people will leave early (myself included). I know you’re probably thinking “Why wouldn’t you stay until the end?,” but as I said, we were on an island. My friend and I were staying in Queens so we left after about five Snoop songs (with multiple other people). If we stayed until the end, we would have been waiting with however many other thousands of people to catch a ferry back to the city. As it was, we didn’t get back to Queens until 2:30 AM. I think if we stayed, we wouldn’t have gotten back until 5 AM. I love the idea of having a hip hop show on an island, but in some ways it was inconvenient. I probably would have stayed a lot longer if the show was right in the city but I was stressed thinking about getting home.

Anyway, Rock The Bells NYC 2010 was not a disappointment. The main reason I had even discovered the show was because I was looking for Wiz Khalifa tickets and he alone would have been worth it to me. My other favorites were Wu Tang, Tribe Called Quest, Immortal Technique, and Snoop. I wish I could have stayed until the end, but maybe next year. I fully intend to buy tickets to this festival from now on because it is without a doubt worth the money. Where else can you find the BEST hip hop artists in the world, all in one location? Thanks RTB, see ya in 2011.

Don’t Be a Hard Rock When You Really Are a Gem

In the past year and a half, I’ve become semi-obsessed with Wiz Khalifa and his music (don’t worry, there will be a post about him soon enough). Due to my obsession, I started feverishly looking up tour dates because I really want to see him live. Imagine my surprise when I came across Rock the Bells, an annual music festival that takes place in approximately four cities during the summer. At first, the only show I saw was taking place in California. I actually started looking at flights because I wanted to see him so bad. And then I found that Rock the Bells comes to Governor’s Island in New York City. This summer, the date of the concert is August 28, and yes, I spontaneously bought two tickets without thinking twice.

However, my excitement comes from the line-up at Rock the Bells 2010. First I saw that Wiz Khalifa would be performing, then Snoop Dogg, then a Tribe Called Quest, then Brother Ali, then Wu-Tang Clan and the list goes on. But here’s the real kicker…this year’s special guest is none other than Lauryn Hill. Yes, THE Lauryn Hill. Let me take you back to 1998 when her debut single “Doo Wop (That Thing)” was released. It was Hill’s first Billboard Hot 100 number-one and won her Best Female R&B Vocal Performance and Best R&B Song at the 1999 Grammy Awards. I can remember at age 10 listening to this song and singing whatever lyrics I could remember.

Over the past few years, I’ve become sort of a hip-hop connoisseur. I tend to not listen to the radio anymore because I’m sick of listening to what everyone else listens to. Since going to college, I’ve become friends with (mainly) guys who share a love of hip-hop and understand my taste in music. Last summer, my friends in Saratoga got me on a Fugees kick. I love the Fugees, and it only further reminded me of how amazing Hill’s voice is. There is something about her voice that just captures me; it’s beautiful and strong and powerful and addicting. I find myself relating to her and feeling like she gets me even though we’ve obviously never met.

Some people claim that hip hop is dead. I don’t agree with this statement entirely because some artists (Wiz, Lauryn, Wale) give me hope. And even better, Lauryn Hill is on her way back. Since the release of “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill” album in 1998, she’s been off the charts aside from a Fugees surprise appearance at Dave Chappelle’s Block Party and a reunion concert in California in the mid-2000s. She rarely does interviews and gives public statements and says she’s been busy being a mother.

So now Hill is the featured special guest at Rock the Bells. On August 28, I get to see one of the greatest MCs perform live. Not only is this exciting for me, but it’s exciting for hip hop in general. Who else can pull off a style that combines hip hop with reggae and soul? Not many. Unfortunately, there is some doubt that she will actually follow through. I personally hope she does. I respect Hill as a person and musician and feel that she would add so much to Rock the Bells. What are your thoughts? Do you think she’s really back or is it just a rumor?

Here is a link for Rock the Bells… http://rockthebells.net/ . As I said before, the NYC show takes place on Governor’s Island in New York City at 2 PM on August 28. The link gives a list of all performers at this year’s show. General admission tickets are $100 and this includes a ticket to take the ferry to Governor’s Island. A show like this seems too good to be true…so support hip hop, buy a ticket, and I’ll see you out there.