… Indeed, as this past week served as the first time that LL Cool J has ever graced Australian shores in his illustrious 24-year career. While he made sure to apologise for taking so long to make it down under, he certainly made up for lost time, as I had the pleasure of attending the Melbourne leg of Uncle L’s tour.
Victorian DMC champion DJ J-Red ripped it up on the decks, displaying his expertise throughout the night and keeping the somewhat overanxious entertained, delivering a suitably retro selection of Hip Hop tunes.
Highly talented Melbourne rapper N’Fa, formerly of 1200 Techniques, put on an entertaining performance, with cuts from his Cause An Effect album. The fact that LL Cool J was the headliner for the night meant that N’Fa didn’t receive as much attention during his set as maybe he should have; serving as a warm-up for the crowd more than anything else.
As technicians equipped the stage with special police siren-style lighting, two video screens (which displayed film clips to accompany each track) and at least a dozen roses for the ladies in attendance, it was clear that we would be in for something memorable. Queens, NY’s finest emerged after what seemed like an eternity, with both DJ Bobcat and the iconic DJ Cut Creator in tow.
Clad in a simple red t-shirt/baseball cap and jeans combo, along with a modest diamond-encrusted chain (by rapper standards anyway), LL commanded the captive audiences’ attention from beginning to end; on stage he is both an impressive and captivating presence.
He eased through a healthy mix of Hip Hop classics (I Can’t Live without My Radio, I’m Bad) and his signature ladies anthems (Around The Way Girl, Hey Lover). LL also made room for newer material including Love U Better and Headsprung.
He couldn’t be accused of leaving any portion of the crowd out, covering all of the bases from his block pounding rendition of I Need Love (which is less cheesy when performed live) to the chest beating adrenaline rush of Mama Said Knock You Out (which was the real highlight for me).
The intimate locale, The Palace (formerly The Metro), was perfect as LL showed his down to earth side, bantering with the audience in between songs. He also invited several audience members on to the stage (particularly females, surprise surprise) throughout the night.
The most interesting moment of crowd participation was during his tribute to the pioneers of Hip Hop, as the stage was packed with audience members, while James Todd went through his own renditions of classics including Run-DMC’s It’s Like That and Rapper’s Delight by the Sugar Hill Gang.
He didn’t stop there though, as he made it rain at The Palace (with some American one dollar bills and personalised balloons).
Going Back To Cali, which closed the show, sent everyone home happy. It was certainly a once in a lifetime experience, which proved that sometimes it takes a veteran to know how rocking a crowd is done. Bigger and deffer than ever!
Awesome show
This would have to be my favourtie hip-hop experience of all time. I loved the fact that he covered all his older material, with tracks like Radio, I Need Love and Rock The Bells all sounding dope. But the one highlight for me was when he dropped Mama Said Knock You out, that was a real highlight. LL is a great entertainer, and he put on a memorably hip-hop show, which is rare for a big name international act.