DCist: Kanye West @ Nissan Pavilion

headhot

Tue, 13 May 2008 16:10:15 -0500

F the Nissan Pavilion. They don't care about their customers.

jpotter

Tue, 13 May 2008 14:49:47 -0500

the show was awesome...lupe & n.e.r.d. both were great, though for such a huge show, they didn't do much with their set (i wish the order would've been rihanna, n.e.r.d., lupe, but i think it was based more on spectacle than artistry). rihanna's set was more in the style of kanye's vegas-review-event style, which was fun. and kanye's set was sick. (who would've thought i'd have tons more fun at kanye than radiohead?) w jacarl, interesting that you say that, because i'd been excited to see the "muppets" that were supposedly going to be in the show, but none ever came out...

mellbell

Tue, 13 May 2008 14:27:16 -0500

@WJM: So that would make him the Louis Vuitton Don West? I like it! @voteprime: Reminds me of one of my favorite rhymes on the new album... I don't see why I need a stylist When I shop so much I can speak Italian

guest number 10

Tue, 13 May 2008 13:50:08 -0500

MikeB I'm so with you on that jab.

rdo

Tue, 13 May 2008 12:59:13 -0500

It will only take one person to get mugged by a young black male wearing Vans and a Lacoste shirt before that style gets labeled "gangsta" and this discussion will be mooted.

hillrat

Tue, 13 May 2008 12:35:20 -0500

What are you talking about? There was a reference to "skinny jeans" and Radiohead fans in the third sentence of DCist's Morning Roundup yesterday. Regardless, for better or worse hip-hop is often just as much about fashion and style as it is about music but the same thing can be said about rock & roll. Think back to when the Black Crowes broke out, there were just as many references to their kind of old school hippy style as their blues based rock. 80's hair bands were more about style than substance too, I just don't see the facts supporting your argument.

voteprime

Tue, 13 May 2008 12:34:03 -0500

@goat boy: clothes are a big part of the hip-hop & rap world. Just about all rappers and hip-hop artists mention their clothing in their music. And Kanye specifically prides himself on his stylishness (and raps about it). Plus, Jay-Z, Diddy, and probably way too many other rappers to even count own their own clothing line. I think clothing really is a part of the "progressive hip-hop vs. mainstream rap" debate. So I don't think clothing is a bad thing at all to bring up in a hip-hop music discussion.

mellbell

Tue, 13 May 2008 12:28:25 -0500

@goat boy: For what it's worth, someone who spotted them in DC did make fun of their Flock-of-Seagulls-inspired hairstyles. Honestly, if there were any doubt, replace "hip hop" with "indie" and "BLACK" with "WHITE"; the point still holds. Music and fashion have always intersected (cf. zoot suits). That's just the way it is.

MikeB

Tue, 13 May 2008 12:13:39 -0500

Yeah, but DCist did accuse Radiohead fans of wearing skinny jeans. That kinda hurt.

goat_boy

Tue, 13 May 2008 12:03:14 -0500

why the fuck is clothing part of the discussion of hip hop music. really dumb, and kind of condescending and indicative of the low expectations society has for hip hop culture (read: BLACK PEOPLE). did anyone talk about what radiohead was wearing at their show? doubtful.

W Jacarl Melton

Tue, 13 May 2008 11:56:39 -0500

Although my experience wasn't like folks on Sunday, going out there was a trek. I could hear Lupe when I was getting my "will call" tickets but by the time I got in, N.E.R.D. was halfway through their set. I saw Lupe outdoors in Baltimore last year and, although I like him, he couldn't carry the performance. I've heard similar critiques about him on this tour and elsewhere. N.E.R.D. was essentially the Pharrell Williams Show. Really loud and a lot of energy especially with two drum kits. Also, a lot of people on stage. That was a little distracting. Rihanna did a decent job although it was obvious she was lip-syncing during choreography heavy tunes.

hillrat

Tue, 13 May 2008 11:52:55 -0500

Better music, better clothes, let's hope hip hop keeps moving in this direction. It's not a matter of one style or the other being "better" IMHO. I'm just glad that hip-hop style is no longer a monolith; now a young brotha in a suit can be just as hip-hop as the dude saggin' & wearing Tims.

TW

Tue, 13 May 2008 11:46:57 -0500

Did anyone make it for the openers? I would have liked to see N.E.R.D. and Lupe but I couldn't justify going to Nissan.

zippy

Tue, 13 May 2008 11:37:49 -0500

Cosign the "American Gangster" image hip-hop carried for like the last 15 years...that shit needs to go.

Districtonian

Tue, 13 May 2008 11:36:56 -0500

Yeah, it's interesting to see how Kayne's and N.E.R.D.'s style has filtered down as well. I mentor DC middle schoolers, and they by and large imitate the more prep/skateboard style of Kanye and N.E.R.D. and don't go in for that baggy, thugish 50 Cent look. Better music, better clothes, let's hope hip hop keeps moving in this direction.

W Jacarl Melton

Tue, 13 May 2008 11:25:49 -0500

I mainly went on recommendation of a friend in Denver. It seems like there were some variations in the shows given Nissan is an outdoor venue and some of the others the tour took place in were indoors. My Denver friend said Kanye actually was suspended in the air for part of the performance and had a random robot come out on stage, a la "Lost In Space." I would've liked to see those elements. Now that I think of it, "Lost In Space" had a character named Don West. Hmm...

hillrat

Tue, 13 May 2008 11:12:01 -0500

Sounds like an interesting show. I'm glad that cats like Kanye and N.E.R.D. are taking hip-hop in new directions and breaking out of the "I'm so hard" straight-jacket that it seemed to have been in for a while.