Review
Publication date : Friday, July 02nd 2010 - 15 796 views
Damian Marley & Nas @ Paris Hip-Hop
The flagship event of the Paris Hip-Hop festival and a one-off date in France, the concert by Nas “Escobar” and Damian “Junior Gong” Marley at the Zénith on Monday 28 June was, predictably, sold out. Report.
 The flagship event of the Paris Hip-Hop festival and a one-off date in France, the concert by Nas “Escobar” and Damian “Junior Gong” Marley at the Zénith on Monday 28 June was, predictably, sold out. Despite the heat, people turned out in droves. After the opening set by Casey, the French rapper currently riding a wave, the group’s DJ kicks off a warm up of hip-hop and reggae classics, which already sets the mood. Like their recent joint album, this concert is meant as a great communion between the two partners’ respective musical worlds.
As soon as the notes of As we enter ring out and the two singers appear on stage, the hall erupts and the already sweltering temperature reaches the limits of the bearable. Tribal war and the very effective Nah mean follow, and it quickly becomes clear that the connection between Nas and Damian is genuine and that the show, very well rehearsed, runs flawlessly.
 Damian Marley then leaves the stage for a first time, to let the rapper treat the audience to a medley of the big hits that have marked his career (Nas is like, Represent, Hip hop is dead, If I ruled the world) and the forwards follow one another tirelessly. The crowd is won over, everyone sings along, dances and jumps in every direction, and the rapper seems delighted with the Parisian welcome.
Junior Gong returns to perform a few more tracks from the album “Distant Relatives” with Nas. Count your blessings, Dispear and above all Promised land, on which Damian takes on the role of Dennis Brown on the choruses with honours, all hit the mark.
Then it is Escobar’s turn to leave the stage and the youngest of Bob’s sons to put on the show on his own. The mission, Shoot out, Ghetto youths and Love and Inity are the hits he chooses to perform, but it is his cover of War/No more trouble that gets the biggest forward, with the Zénith packed to the rafters and singing in unison. Then comes Move, his song on the Exodus instrumental, and here again the sound of Bob Marley does the job, Damian’s voice undeniably having that same sensitivity that made his father’s so magical.
 When Nas reappears on stage, two extra microphones have been set up and Damian announces the arrival of the Malian duo Amadou and Mariam, who are there to accompany them on Patience. This surprise delights the crowd and the slightly more laid-back rhythm of the song lets everyone catch their breath. Strong will continue then lifts the atmosphere a notch and the end of the song, rapped by Nas, is quite simply breathtaking.
The rapper takes the opportunity to redo a few songs solo (Hate me now, Got Ur self a gun), then Damian does the same, winning one of the biggest forwards of the night with the inevitable Welcome to Jamrock. The concert naturally closes as a duo, with Road to Zion, which lights up the Zénith with thousands of lighters, then the very meditative Africa must wake up, which calms the crowd’s ardour a little. But that was without counting on the encore: a cover of Could you be loved that has the whole Zénith dancing one last time and ends with a truly impressive raggamuffin freestyle from Damian.
After two solid hours of non-stop music, the audience is on its knees, but wearing a blissful smile. Even if a few songs from “Distant Relatives” were missing (such as the excellent Friends), nothing to complain about, nothing to add: expectations were fully met. Damian Marley and Nas are a team that works, and after what will surely remain the concert of the year in Paris, we have every right to hope that their joint adventure will continue beyond this world tour.
Report written by Alexandre Tonus
Tags : Damian Marley (102), Reggae crossover (44), Festivals 2010 (24)
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