Words Chike Ohayia Edits Lucas Alvarado Farrar

On June 17th Kendrick Lamar took South Paw by force headlining his first show in New York City and building hype for the release his first album, Section 80. He hit Brooklyn with his Black Hippie teammate Ab-Soul as part of his national tour, giving New York the honor of the hosting him on his 24th birthday.

DJ’d by Meka of 2DopeBoyz the show jumped off to a slow series of opening acts. With Jah C & The Antidote giving the crowd more of an afro punk, garage band mash up than a hip hop set, hype man Kid Potential was called into action to raise the energy. Pulling a goon named Marvin on to the stage for a wild rendition of Bump N Grind, Potential got the crowd back in it.

Meanwhile, Nitty Scott MC prepped backstage for what would prove to be the best opening act. The crowd showed familiarity with her that was not seen again until Kendrick came out. As one of the few females brave enough to grab the mic, Nitty Scott showed that she has more than good looks to show for her sets. Be sure to check out some of her tracks from her mixtape The Cassette Chronicles.

Sean Price made a guest appearance during Apollo the Great’s set, the last hype moment of the openers.

As soon as Kendrick came out to ‘The Heart pt. 2’, the opening track off his mixtape Overly Dedicated, the crowd erupted. Everyone was live, hands waving, cameras flashing and SouthPaw surged with energy. The stage burned at over 100 degrees as the summer heat mixed with the Brooklyn hype, but Kendrick stayed buried in his red Adidas hoodie through five tracks.

After getting the crowd to throw their Hiii Power fingers in the air, Kendrick took a break to do a little acting. He told stories about how his parents pushed him in school, threw the livest parties out of their home and exposed him to a great depth of music and culture.

Rapping less about drugs and gangs and more about the social realities of the New West, Kendrick is helping to define 21st century hip hop as greater than Youtube sensations. Songs like H.O.C., which he performed while Ab-Soul blew smoke in his face, show Kendrick’s will power in the face of pressure. His music constantly reinforces his self-confidence and thirst for growth, while reminding his listeners that dreams evolve. When crowd requested Cut You Off blasted from the stage that sentiment of progression rung out.

As the show closed, Kendrick played a few cuts off his new album. Rather than performing the tracks he mimed them as they played in the background. There was a good mix of hype songs and slow sensual tunes. Get ready for Section 80 to drop on July 2.

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Photography by Far Fetched Future

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