By Stephanie Claytor
April, 30, 2010
Syracuse, NY—Canadian rapper Drake, from Young Money entertainment, performed all of his latest hits including “Successful”, “Say Something”, and “Bed Rock” to a sold out crowd of 10,000 people at the Carrier Dome on Friday, April 30th, as part of Syracuse University’s MayFest celebration. The concert was a part of Drake’s college tour across the country to promote his new album, Thank Me Later, which is being released on June 15th. While the majority of the crowd was Syracuse University students, numerous people living in the city as well as some SU alums from as far as New York City and Washington DC came out to see the concert.
“I’m a fan of his music, not just his present hitmakers but his mixtape career as well. I haven’t had the opportunity to see him live yet so I embraced this opportunity,” Henri Smith, of Queens, New York.
“His music is fresh and on the cutting edge with others in the industry, like Nicki Minaj and Lil Boosie,” said Rachel Grant, an SU alum from Washington DC.
Before the concert, people speculated on whether Drake would perform. Just the day before, he postponed his show at the University of Massachusetts in Lowell because of a doctor-mandated vocal rest. Shortly after he arrived on stage in Syracuse, he told the crowd his doctor ordered him to refrain from performing for three days, but he said he was going against his doctor’s order, because he “loves Syracuse”.
Drake’s voice sounded froggy during his first couple of songs, but after a surprise appearance from the Birdman A.K.A. Baby from Cash Money Records, who ran onto stage to sing “Money to Blow”, Drake’s voice started to blossom.
One of the themes for the night was “Free Weezy,” referring to the southern rapper and founder of Young Money Entertainment, Lil Wayne. The Grammy-award winning artist has been serving a one-year jail sentence since March 8th in Rikers Island, for having a loaded gun on his tour bus back in 2007. As a tribute to Lil Wayne, Drake sang a couple of his songs including “Every Girl” and “Going In” and told the crowd “it’s been a crazy year since they locked his big brother up.”
Midway through the concert, Drake surprised the crowd with a few verses from songs off his new album that haven’t been made played on the radio such as “Fear”, and “Fireworks”. Fear and Fireworks are both rap songs which discuss how money and success change relationships. “Fireworks” is the first song on the new album. The 23-old-rapper told his fans he learned a lot about his self while making it.
“This album is the most honest I’ve ever been with myself. I showed up here to have fun, talk trash, and I appreciate you all coming out to hear me,” said Drake.
One fan shocked Drake with the traditional Syracuse love, handing him a life-size cardboard poster of his head, similar to the signs with the faces of Wes Johnson and Coach Boeheim that were held up during the men’s basketball games this season. Also in the crowd were some of Syracuse’s latest athletic stars, including Johnny Flynn, Wes Johnson, and Art Jones.
Before Drake performed, Canadian rapper k-os took the stage followed by N.E.R.D., a band featuring lead rapper Pharrell. K-os performed a handful of songs , threw sample CDs into the crowd, and told the crowd about his fourth album, Yes!, which was released a year ago. K-os describes himself as a rap n’roller. His music combines rap, rock, reggae, and funk music to create a unique sound, inspired by Toronto roots. In his rhymes , he is critical of mainstream hip hop culture’s obsession with fame, money, and violence. Throughout his performance, there was not a lot of singing along in the audience; it appeared his music was unknown to most of the crowd.
N.E.R.D., followed k-os, and amplified the crowd for Drake, singing about 10 of their latest hits. Lead rapper Pharrell showed a lot of energy in every song, jumping up and down as he spit rhymes to the rock band playing underneath his lyrics. The groups’ music encompasses a mix of rock, hip hop, rap, and funk music.
“I’m a big fan of N.E.R.D. and Drake. It’s exciting that Syracuse got such big artists,” said Anna Briccetti, a Syracuse University student from Louisville, Kentucky.
The group showcased their new single, “Hot and Fun,” which will be featured on their 4th album, Nothing, slated to be released on June 15th . This hip hop song with disco undertones, features the chorus, “all the girls want hot and fun” talking about woman’s desires to have sex, and money, while having fun. Some of the other songs they performed were “Spaz”, “Everyone Nose” (All the girls standing in the line for the bathroom), and “Sooner or Later”, which starts off slow with Pharrell singing a melody in the beginning and then transitions to rock for the chorus.
This summer, N.E.R.D. heads overseas to tour in Europe. After Syracuse, Drake takes his tour to New Hampshire on May 8th, and then out west to California on May 12th.
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