Common Live at The House of Blues: 06.01.05

The DJs from Power92 might've hyped up the crowd in anticipation of Common's return to his hometown Chicago, nothing could've prepared them for the performance that he gave. From the moment he stepped out on to the stage, there was a feeling that this night would be genuinely special. His new album BE, reviewed earlier, is now sitting high in the #2 slot of the Billboard charts (#1 Hip Hop) and has already gone gold. This concert could very well have marked a turning point in his career, as this could potentially be the album that pushes Common into being a mainstream name. He introduced the set with his lovely and appropriate intro to his most current album (also entitled "BE"), and defined the significance of the "Basement Experience" that he is trying to represent; a place where individuals shined for their own uniqueness. This uniqueness was clearly brought through Common's own definitive personality and style, as the already incredible tracks from BE, Like Water For Chocolate and even earlier albums were taken to an even higher level. Common also did an exceptional job of mixing his own music with that of songs that he guest appeared on such as Black Star's "Respiration," Kanye West's "Get 'Em High," and surprisingly even Erykah Badu's remix of "Love of My Life." Common also paid tribute to a number of the older Hip Hop artists, through not only giving a brief history of Hip Hop (which appropriately also led to a great solo performance by his DJ, as the DJ was the original centerpiece of Hip Hop), but also referencing a number of the older songs during his performances. The highlights of the concert were Common's freestyle over A Tribe Called Quest's "Electric Relaxation," his more or less first hit single "The Light," "Funky For You," and the outstanding encore which featured a spoken word piece as an intro to the concluding song, "It's Your World." The concert gave newer fans a great opportunity to see what Common is truly about, as a man who loves Chicago, and is not only about fun, but also about expanding people's horizon's (both intellectually and socially) as he expresses that both through his music and his improv work in-between songs. Mix that with an incredible amount of crowd participation and energy, which Common fed off of really well and it adds up to one of the best shows of the year by far.

★★★★★