I almost didn’t stick around to see the mighty Mos Def last night at his The Ecstatic tour concert on Governor’s Island. I was wet from the rainshowers earlier in the afternoon. Mos didn’t hit the stage until after midnight. There were some people in the venue that had been there since 8pm. The funny thing is that as soon as Mos showed up all the delays and the less than impressive opening acts were forgotten. Mos Def is charming that way.
Many rap fans have complained that Mos uses his charm on the buyers as well. I don’t say that. I loved Mos Def’s The New Danger. I played that joint riderk. Tru Magic was another story but I still liked it, or better yet, the idea of it. The Ecstatic on the other hand was one of the best CD’s of 2009 and should have a top 25 position for the 2000’s. The key to Mos Def is that he can not be put into a box that says who he is. Just when you think you know him he uses his invisibility super powers.
Just as there has been a movement to state that African Americans are post-Black Mos Def has been charging forward with a pan-Humanism angle. He culls musical styles from every corner of the Earth, particularly Africa and the Caribbean. He jumps into central and south America just to make sure that all Brown people feel at home. That is the true magic of Mos Def. He speaks to all of us that believe we can improve the world. The first step isn’t a two-step tho’. It is a nodding of our collective heads
Quiet Dog Bite Hard
Revelations
Roses
No Hay Nada Mas
Pistola
Casa Bey
The rain finally came back down to wash us off Governor’s Island and back into the subways, highways and byways but for a few hours we were free and it made us happy.
It made me ecstatic.
