Anyone that pays even the mildest attention to hip-hop along the Front Range knows most shows are relegated to small and mid-size venues like the Ogden Theatre, Cervantes’ Masterpiece Ballroom or Boulder’s Fox Theatre.
That’s what made Sunday night’s concert such a thrilling anomaly: the star-studded lineup of Kanye West, Rihanna, N.E.R.D. and Lupe Fiasco actually filled the gargantuan Pepsi Center, a feat few acts outside of Jay-Z and Mary J. Blige (whose tour will skip Denver this year) can accomplish.
The unique electricity of a hip-hop show also buzzes extra loud at an arena, the crowd sweating and pulsating in unison, rivaling even the most frenzied death metal or electro-pop concert. In other words, it’s a big old dance party.
“If you’re too cool, sit down!” N.E.R.D. leader Pharrell Williams shouted halfway through his band’s hip-hop/rock set, referencing the fact if you didn’t come to shake it, you shouldn’t have come. N.E.R.D.’s “Lapdance” got the crowd jumping — as instructed by the chorus — its stuttering beats tumbling like a box of dry tinder down an echo chamber.
Williams happily skanked his way across the wide, strobe-lit stage, a burly live drummer propelling songs like “Rock Star” and “She Wants to Move” — the latter featuring female audience members on stage with N.E.R.D. principal Shay and the rest of the band.
Rihanna’s set injected a sharp sensuality into the proceedings, her singers and dancers clad in pink and green neon-accented street gear, each matching her confident strut to create a vibe like a post-apocalyptic burlesque show. (The blazingly bright “R” in the center of the stage didn’t hurt, either.)
“Umbrella” kicked off with a slow guitar line before revving into the R&B equivalent of a slow-burning rock epic, while “S.O.S.” had impressively precarious dance moves. By the time “Don’t Stop the Music” kicked in, the crowd seemed nearly spent. It didn’t help when awkward choreography — dancers swinging green and blue light-saber-esque props with the grace of toddlers — detracted from the sonics.
By 10:30 p.m., Kanye West’s purportedly lengthy set had barely begun, but the orchestra-quality phalanx of percussion at the bottom of the stage promised a sound to match the superstar MC and producer’s thunderous ego.
John Wenzel: 303-954-1642 or jwenzel@denverpost.com
