STERLING HIEGHTS — If any of the top-billed artists on the Powernomics Tour – Nas, Lauryn Hill and Dave Chappelle, respectively — were to come through Detroit solo, it would be cause for celebration. They are titans of their craft, be it stand-up comedy , singing, or rapping and, some would even say the unrivaled best at their art.
So when they appeared together Friday night Sept. 8 at the Michigan Lottery Amphitheatre, expectations could not be any higher. There was an unmistakable jubilance in the crowd that signaled something special was lying in wait.
And the triple threat delivered.
Coming through town together as part of a tour to raise money for Nas’ venture capital firm QueensBridge, all of the proceeds for the tour are going to be directed at funding fledgling startup businesses. Additionally, videos interspersed throughout the night educated fans about the important mission of the Equal Justice Initiative, which aims to end mass incarceration and unjust sentencing in the United States.
A side-splitting hour from Chappelle, coming off a lengthy run at the Fillmore Detroit earlier this year, deconstructed everything from the transgender military ban to Michael Jackson He also took a moment to remind fans again why he is so fond of Detroit.
“I see you. You made our music, you made our culture,”he said, referring to Motown’s deep influence on modern pop culture, and Detroit’s abiding national relevancy and recrudescence in the news. It was a sincere moment from the humorist, whose keenly-realized observations laid a positive and socially conscious framework for the evening.
After some work by Eminem’s former DJ Green Lantern on the turntables, rap god Nas romped onto stage and displayed unequaled agility from the get-go. His short first set ran through hits such as “I Can,” “Got Ur Self A…” and “One Mic.” It was potent, and achieved the mission of fomenting elation from an already stimulated audience.
Hill kept the excitement level up and further raised the bar during her set, which featured a large jazz ensemble. Last year at the Fillmore Detroit, Hill was burdened by busy song arrangements. On Friday it seemed that the challengingly huge live instrumentation for the classic Fugees and solo material only needed room to breath in a bigger space. A masterful “Everything is Everything” opened the night as a statement that Hill and her band were here to play, and they didn’t let up once over the expansive set. “Final Hour” blew the roof off, with Hill exhibiting her stunning rapping to go along with her angelic and powerful voice.
The timeless Fugees smash “Ready or Not” and the Roberta Flack cover “Killing Me Softly With His Song” led to a second Nas set, wherein arguably the greatest rapper of all time turned it up yet again. “NY State of Mind” and “The World Is Yours” were dexterously performed, providing a one-two punch of numbers from the canonical “Illmatic.” Hill then returned to bring the night to a crushing close, inviting Nas to the stage to perform their collaboration “If I Ruled the World.”
It was a night when two of the most imperative and legendary adherents of aggressive East Coast boom-bap street rap share the stage with arguably the greatest living stand-up comedian. An incredible show that will stand tall as the one of the defining live musical moment of 2017 in Metro Detroit.
