Gig Review: Kendrick Lamar
Palace Theatre - Friday 21st December
While 2012 may not have eventuated as the actual end of the
world, it may instead prove to be the end of the world as we know it. The
beginning of a new era. 2012 may well be the year that divides Hip-Hop into two
distinct ages; Before Kendrick and After Kendrick.
Make no mistake. He has arrived. With his new smash hit
album 'good kid M.A.A.D city,' Kendrick Lamar has arrived with devotion from
Hip-Hop fans not seen since those obsessed with Tupac in the 1990s and Eminem
in the early 2000s.
With crowds building around Bourke Street's Palace Theatre
hours before the West-Coast star's debut Melbourne show, it was evident early
that as predicted, December 21st 2012 was to provide something special.
Five-panel caps, cuffed pants and buttoned shirts were the flavour of the night
as Kendrick devotees anxiously counted down the minutes till their hero took
the stage and indulged them in arguably the most anticipated show of the year.
Local Hip-Hop favourite Tuka, from Sydney group the
Thundamentals, found the going tough as the opening act, continually drowned
out by the restless mob who had only one name on their minds and lips:
"Kendrick." Tuka's biggest cheer, despite being a regular on Australian
airwaves over the last 12 months, was reserved for his announcement that his
set was finishing up and the star of the show was only minutes away.
Just as he had entered the scene a few years earlier, Lamar
unassumingly entered the stage; hooded jacket, head down. This time to the
deafening roars from a raucous crowd proclaiming the new King of Rap.
Right from the outset, Kendrick made it clear, this night
was not to be a concert but a party, and he delivered on his word. From the
first bar you were in the palm of his hand, on a journey through light and
shade, through shout and whisper. On more than one occasion I found myself
almost lost and in a daze, coming back into the realisation that I was at a gig
surrounded by thousands of others, rather than at an intimate one-on-one with
Kendrick Lamar. He magically transported you into his story.
You have to be reminded that this guy is only 25 years old
and has just released his first commercial album. He spits with such presence
and authority that you feel as if he's been in the game for decades
Lamar performed an appropriate mix of his newer stuff and
earlier catelogue, almost testing the crowd to see who's been a fan since day
one and who's just jumped on the M.A.A.D city bandwagon. There was no need. The
packed house knew every word of every song and often drowned him out. Early
tracks 'Hol Up' and 'ADHD' were crowd favourites, while the emphatic response
to 'P&P' proved that anyone who had bought tickets had known Kendrick back
when he was just a kid out of Compton releasing his independent 'Overly
Dedicated' Mixtape.
What is so catchy about Kendrick is his unique rubato-like
flow, his ability to storytell believably and his skill of penning incredibly
infectious hooks which have now developed into full-scale global anthems.
One could have been forgiven for thinking the roof was
caving in and armageddon had arrived when the Hit-Boy produced 'Backstreet
Freestyle' dropped and all three stories of the Palace simultaneously jumped
along to Kendrick's dream. The biggest moment of the show however, was reserved
for his latest smash hit 'Swimming Pools.' The song in itself summed up the
journey of the entire show. The crowd was taken through the murky depths of the
slow introduction to the echoing shouts of the hook - again with every person
in the palm of his hand, Kendrick was not letting up.
Lamar performed enough material from his critically
acclaimed album Section 80 to keep the purists happy, and kept reminding the
crowd that this was not a show but a party - a punchline that was certainly
justified by the freely flowing liqour, the puffs of white smoke emerging into
the air, and the disregard for the curfew set by venue management. Kendrick
closed the night by playing two encore tracks, finishing with lyrically
intimate 'HiiPoWeR' and declaring that no matter what, no matter how big he
gets, he will be back.
People who say Hip-Hop is dead are deluded. With the likes
of J Cole, BIG Sean and Childish Gambino all recently releasing critically
acclaimed tapes and albums, Hip-Hop has not been re-incarnated but refined for
the next generation. And not for the first time, the King of Hip-Hop is a voice
from Compton. Let there be no dispute, the reign of Kendrick Lamar has begun
and if Friday night is any indication, he is here to stay.
