Jay-Z has long referred to himself as “Jay-Hova, the god MC.” At Hot 97’s annual Summer Jam concert, the semi-retired rapper and current Def Jam president lived up to his name by accomplishing what seemed impossible: He roused an indifferent audience to its feet.
The West Coast gangsta Game provided a few sparks Sunday night with an incendiary attack on 50 Cent. But when Kanye West introduced Jay-Z as a special surprise guest, the crowd of 50,000 inside Giants Stadium erupted, screaming and waving for the legend.
Jay-Z stood silent for a few moments amid the applause, then performed his songs “Public Service Announcement” and “Encore” from “The Black Album,” which Jay-Z has touted as his final release. The crowd faithfully chanted the lyrics, outstretching a sea of arms with the thumb and index fingers forming the diamond-shaped symbol of Jay’s Roc-a-Fella records label.
For New York’s notoriously fickle rap audience, Jay-Z’s appearance was the highlight of an otherwise lackluster event.
The unmistakable odor of marijuana hung heavy in the air as the concert began near the promised start time of 7 p.m. with a quick Amerie performance, followed by sets from the only local rappers on the bill, Cam’ron and his Dipset crew, then Jadakiss alongside his D-Block contingent.
Although New York is the undisputed birthplace of hip-hop culture, the South’s current dominance was evident in the amount of time and order of appearance allotted to acts like Ludacris and Lil Jon. Cam’ron and D-Block were quickly ushered off the stage, while Lil Jon’s 40-minute performance included a string of crunk stars like Lil’ Scrappy (who tried in vain to get the crowd to recite the lyrics from his song “No Problem”), Pitbull, Trillville and the Ying Yang Twins.
Lil Jon also featured reggaeton star Daddy Yankee, who rhymed in Spanish; a surprise appearance by Ice Cube, who momentarily moved the crowd with “Check Yourself before You Wreck Yourself”; and concluded with the reggae legend’s Bob Marley’s youngest son Damian singing his dancehall tune “Welcome to Jamrock.”
But the Summer Jam concert (now in its 12th year from NYC’s Hot 97 radio station; it will air June 24 on Fuse at 9pm EDT) is famous for airing rap beefs, and this year’s drama came from Game
The Dr. Dre protege reignited his battle with former boss 50 Cent, despite a public reconciliation held after 50 and Game’s posses traded gunshots over 50 kicking Game out of his G-Unit clique.
Game’s made a dramatic entrance, clad in a Mets Jersey with a handkerchief covering his face and brandishing a baseball bat. But the myriad epithets he spewed at 50 Cent — who was himself booed at last year’s concert — only elicited mild reactions from the crowd. Most people simply looked stunned as Game repeatedly called 50 a rat and worse, even bringing out a mascot in a rat costume clad in a G-Unit T-shirt and then attacking it.
Interspersed with this vitriol was energetic performances of his songs, and it was one of the few rap featuring something other than throngs of hype men jumping around the stage. But the crowd couldn’t be swayed Game’s heavily rotated hits. Even bringing out his young son dressed in a matching outfit to perform “Like Father, Like Son” induced only a lukewarm response from the audience.
The show’s headliners, perhaps acclimated to the tough New York crowd, performed with jubilance despite the muted audience. Ciara made an electrifying presentation of the dance moves from her sultry videos. Ludacris performed from his extensive catalog and introduced Bobby Valentino, the newest member of his DTP squad.
Snoop Dogg, who emerged at 10:43 p.m. armed with a live band, a rhinestone-covered microphone and a blunt, appeared unmoved by the hordes of people exiting during his set. He brought out old DPG cohorts Daz Dillinger and Kurupt, who began performing a series of obscure songs that seemed to prompt a mass exodus. But Snoop gleefully continued, persisting through a medley of his old favorites like “What’s My Name” and “Deep Cover” even as the house lights came up.
The West Coast veteran’s sound was shut off before he could perform “Drop It Like Its Hot,” abruptly ending an unremarkable Summer Jam.
Copyright 2005 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.