New York, NY- “We going back to the motherland” – that’s exactly where
Nas & Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley
took us. The poetic dynamic duo blessed NYC with their presence on Monday night at the Highline Ballroom for the second show of the
Distant Relatives Tour
. In the start of the night, Evil Genius
DJ Green Lantern
warmed the ever so anxious crowd up with throwbacks by Biggie Smalls, Snoop Dog, Jadakiss, and Jay-z.
Continuing to get the crowd hyped, the Evil Genius loudly declared “There would be NO Hip Hop without Reggae”, while seductively drawing in the crowd by playing Jamaica’s own Lady Saw, Serani, and the legendary Bob Marley. Putting the show into the hands of its very own headliners, Nas & Damian Marley performed such powerful tracks off their new collaborative album
, available now. Performing songs like
,
, and
Patience
, Nas and Damian used their rhythmic sounds to relay messages of economic, political, and social change. Following was more food for thought with
Ancient People
and
Nah Mean
, which set forth questions for our new President Barack Obama.
The original Nastradamus performed his classic hits like Nas Like Me, the very crowd driven hits
Represent
, and
. After saying how much he hates radio, Nas found the next enlightening words to be
F*** Radio
, leading Nas into his next selection
If I Ruled The World
. At the end of the track the angelic collection of background singers bridged off to “Walk right up to the Sun, Hand in Hand”, giving Nas the opportunity to pay respect to Gang Starr MC Guru, who passed away in mid April, stating, “My man Guru, he walks.”
Hip-hop legend Guru was not the only one who given respect; the show also featured a special appearance by no other than the
DJ Kool Herc
, the Jamaican born DJ who is best known as “The Hip Hop Originator” shared the stage with Nas. After coming back to the stage, Damian Marley gave the crowd more knowledge of his roots while the vibrant colors of the Jamaican waved behind him. Damian then engaged the crowd by jumping and pumping his arms to his hit single
Welcome to Jamrock
, which led to the crowd erupting when Nas started to perform his 1999 hit
Hate Me Now
.
The night then winded down with Nas & Damian Marley singing the heartfelt and intellectual features
Count Your Blessings
and
Land of Promise
, both focusing on the need for unity. Fittingly the night ended with Nas raising his fist while receiving a hug from Marley. If we’re going to change the world, it might just start with hip-hop.