J Music – Page 5

J Events: Concert Review of Nicki Minaj’s Pinkprint Tour

August 10, 2015February 2, 2024ayminor

The-Pink-Print-Tour-Nicki-Minaj-Meek-Mill-Review — Courtesy of @nickiminaj.

When The New York Times published their review of The Pinkprint Tour, I was surprised by what appeared to be the article’s general sentiment:

Review: @NICKIMINAJ is at the helm of the best hip-hop tour lineup of the year http://t.co/d6Hqhze9T9 pic.twitter.com/m24VUqTfKB

— The New York Times (@nytimes) July 28, 2015

I’m glad I took the time to read the article, however, because it was a bit more nuanced than the headline would let on. I’ve pulled a few pieces of “subtle shade” from the article that really get at the truth of the matter:

What the NY Times said: In total, the lineup reflected Ms. Minaj’s many parts — tough, sultry, exuberant, colorful, exaggerated. In her own herky-jerky set, though, she was toggling among approaches: street-wise songs, saccharine pop hits, collaborations, collisions of all these. Ms. Minaj’s catalog is so varied, she has colonized so much turf in so many spaces, that unifying it under one umbrella is a challenge. (nytimes.com)

What they meant: Her set was all over the place. There was no real storyline or theme, which is ok I guess, but there was also no real flow. She would jumped from slow to fast, pop to mixtape content, old material to new. It didn’t feel spontaneous, it was just confusing.

What the NY Times said: Often she’s rapping through a grin, striking a pose for the camera, but when she lets the facade down and focuses on the shape and pace of her words, she’s a bulldozer. (nytimes.com)

What they meant: She spent too much time “being cute” and not enough time really diving into the material of her songs. Nicki is know for her many personalities and characters, but she never gave you the full scope on any record she performed, only a taste. I don’t want to see you smiling and giggling during “Lookin’ ***.” Sorry, but no.

What the NY Times said:Meek Mill sped through several of his blustery hits — a minute of one, then another, like a one-sided mixed-martial-arts bout. (nytimes.com)

What they meant: I had no idea Meek was going to perform in between Nicki’s sets, an interesting choice. They took far too much time transitioning between their sets and his first appearance was rather short.

When Meek finally came out he definitely brought the energy up, but he choose to speed through his hits and spent more time on songs that only hardcore fans would know, a mistake in my opinion.

I know it seems I am being super critical of Nicki, but it’s only because I know she can come 10x harder than she did with this tour and the production and overall flow can definitely improve. [For example, I would estimate she spends at least 15-20% of the show trying to make it up and down her set stairs. Either she needs to put on some flats, or take some lessons from Bey, but girl, get it together.] She has the catalog, her stage presence continues to improved, and as a more established artist she has the budget to pull together a great performance, not just mediocre. I guess we shall see what the future holds, until next time.

J Events: Enter Today to Win Free Tickets to the Landmark Music Festival

May 26, 2015February 1, 2024ayminor

Back from the Chi! Good thing I finally got around to checking my emails from last week.

The hosts of the inaugural Landmark Music Festival will be giving away 500 pairs of free festival tickets in a lottery to be held on Thursday, May 28. You have one day to apply — the lottery closes at 5:00p tomorrow! Find more information about the Landmark Music Festival here and full details about the lottery below.

Feeling lucky? Today, the Trust for the National Mall kicks off a public lottery for 500 pairs of free GA tickets to the fest!

You have from 9:00 a.m. EDT on May 21 until 5:00 p.m. EDT on May 27 to be entered to win a spot at the inaugural Landmark! That evening, 500 winning names will be randomly drawn and all entrants will be notified of the results by email the following day.

In partnership with the Trust for the National Mall, Landmark Music Festival will be the first event held to support the Trust’s Landmark Campaign for the National Mall, which will establish various events and promotions to raise awareness, participation and fundraising to restore the most visited national park in America, the National Mall. The grounds, which were built to honor America’s brightest leaders and bravest heroes, is suffering from a growing amount of deferred maintenance and needed upgrades to the infrastructure of the park, which has not seen a major renovation in 40 years. (landmarkfestival.org)

J Events: Global Citizen 2015 Earth Day

April 22, 2015February 1, 2024ayminor

Global-Citizen-2015-earth-day-usher-falloutboy

Happy Earth Day!

To celebrate this year, I attended the Global Citizen 2015 Earth Day, a rally and concert on the Washington Monument grounds.

Leading up to the event there was much skepticism about its impact — although the event was meant to highlight important issues including climate change and the end to poverty, there was a fear that the big draw for people was the concert and the calls to action would be nothing more than an afterthought.

Global-Citizen-Festival-2015-Earth-Day — My view for the day.

Although I do think the concert was a big draw for people, it wasn’t necessarily a bad thing because it provided an audience to hear great music, but also an important message by using interactive videos and big name speeches. The format definitely could have been more effective — they should have featured the speeches and videos in even shorter segments, they often called for taking action on mobile devices which were inoperable due to the huge crowds, and the event should’ve been more eco-friendly; however, even with the drawbacks, this type of event has great potential to strike that perfect balance of “work” and play to really motivate action amongst young adults.

To read more about the issues, watch video from the event and see interactive content go to globalcitizen.org

Now to get to the music — I wasn’t able to see all of the acts live, but I’m glad I made it just in time for Usher and No Doubt — it was such a beautiful day!

Tourist-washington-monument-global-citizen-festival — Enjoying the sunshine in front of the Washington Monument.

Find a few performances below:

Usher brought out special guest Common to perform “Glory” at the 6:40 mark. What do you think of Usher’s rendition?

No Doubt looked and sounded great. Gwen looks like she came in a time machine from 1999, absolutely flawless!

J Music: “Battlefield” – Jordin Sparks (Cover) TBT

March 26, 2015February 1, 2024ayminor

First TBT on the site — more to come!

J Music: Jazmine Sullivan’s Reality Show Tour at the Fillmore

March 20, 2015February 1, 2024ayminor

My first post in the new year, cheers to 2015!

Last week I had the pleasure of attending my first Jazmine Sullivan concert and I promise you it was every bit the experience you’d think it to be.

I arrived a few minutes after 8:00 to another sold out crowd for the 27-year-old phenom. As soon as her husky vocals came through the loud speakers the crowd roared — she came right back with the same energy. That her vocals were on point comes as no surprise. It was her presence that is a true testament to time, healing and facing your demons.

The theme for her comeback, the tour, and her new album Reality Show is self-love, and these days, Jazmine practices what she preaches. She is happy. She is healthy. She is confident. You saw it in her smile, toss of her hair, even in a few Beyonce-like booty pops (I swear). She’s worked through the pain of her abusive relationship, the insecurities that come with fame and she can now stand firm on who she is. For that, I am thankful for her four year hiatus; she’s a better performer because of it.

You gotta put yourself first. – Jazmine Sullivan

Watch her performance of “Forever Don’t Last” below:

https://youtu.be/CMpdAPHOYaA

Not to worry, Jazmine was still able to effectively channeled her pain without wallowing in it. When performing records like "Forever Don't Last," and of course, "In Love With Another Man," she had folks catching the holy ghost because of that raw, captivating emotion.

The Reality Show Tour opener Jordan Bratton was a natural performer and brought something a little different to the show — a soul-electronic fusion. I’ve yet to find much intel, other than his new single “Danger ft. Fabolous,” but I will keep an eye out.

Luckily for any who missed her March tour dates, Jazmine has added new stops in April, including another performance at the Fillmore. Buy your tickets now before it’s too late!

Check out my snapchat from the night:

J Music: UR Experience Tour at Mohegan Sun Arena

November 16, 2014February 1, 2024ayminor

Usher was my first love. Before the Famous Jett Jackson, before Sammie, before J Boog — there was Usher Raymond IV. You name a record off My Way, 8701, or Confessions and my mind instantly goes to a cherished memory from my childhood. Growing up, Confessions defined for me what success was in the industry — diamond album, sold-out tour, movies, timeless music. Until he went and messed around with Tameka, Usher was the standard.

Some argued after Confessions he had nowhere else to go but down — I had always believed he would be considered one of, if not the best entertainer of our time. Nonetheless, it’s been years since I’ve attached Usher’s career with unmatched excellence. In his stead, Beyonce and Justin Timberlake have risen in the ranks, dominating the industry and record sales.

He has the star power, voice, technical skill, and over 20 years in the business — what is the missing element? It’s a question I have asked myself a thousands times. After attending the UR Experience tour at Mohegan Sun arena in Uncasville, CT, I think I can finally articulate my answer.

I’ll fast-forward through DJ Cassidy (mostly because I missed his set — CP Time), and August Alsina (who sounded much less like a goat than anticipated).

I’ll tell you this, the problem with the concert is not Usher and it’s not the music. For two hours straight Usher performed all of his greatest hits with near perfect precision. He was accompanied by world-class dancers who performed a very high-energy set without hint of fatigue, three background singers, and a full-piece band. His charisma shined as he weaved in personal anecdotes throughout the night, keeping the crowd entertained.

The answer then — lack of innovation. The production value was nowhere near where it should be for a star of his caliber. Let’s start with the staging — a small, triangular stage flanked by two short ramps. There was no second stage. There would be no “flying” around the arena. Fans that weren’t in the front, lower level of the arena had little to no interaction with the star beyond a few shoutouts. There was scattered smoke and pyro throughout the performance, but nothing out of the ordinary for your average concert. There would be no stunning visual elements, no spectacular costume designs, and no storyline or cohesion to the songs performed. I counted one video (the intro), some filtered camera shots, 2 jacket changes, 1 shirt change and 1 hat.

I forgot, I think he changed his sneakers too.

Now I believe had the tour gone as planned, as a promotional tool for the now indefinitely delayed UR, the show would’ve been more along the lines of what I had envisioned. I understand they most likely had to cut back on the scale of the production as a result, but at 36, Usher doesn’t have time to waste on mediocre presentations. He needs something BIG to shake up the industry and remind us who has the #1 spot, and I.M.O. it’s now or never. From the album rollout, to the award show performances, to his tour production — everything needs an infusion of innovation.

Steps down off soapbox.

I know I just went in, butttt purely as a fan, I would still encourage you to attend the tour if it stops in your city. I had a great time, I sang, I danced, and when he flashed those pearly whites….swoon.

The rest of the tour dates are below: