With a line still wrapping around the at 9:30 p.m., a DJ warmed up the packed venue for , the headliner for the “2 Good 2 Be T.R.U.” tour on Monday. Filled with everyone from hipsters to 16-year-olds to tough looking music fans and even Broncos linebacker Von Miller, the crowd stood prepped for party mode after sets from August Alsina and . Walking tall and wearing only one chain, Atlanta’s 2 Chainz (formerly Tity Boi of short-lived group Playaz Circle) took the stage to material from his latest album, “BOATS. II #MeTime.” Silver beams of light blasted from his intricate stage setup, sending flashes from the diamonds that glittered his fingers. Sanctifying hip-hop in its most luxurious, 2 Chainz brought a night of club hits and swagger to Denver.
His Southern accent crisp and clear, 2 Chainz begged for more volume from the soundboard before unloading “I Do It.” The crowd bounced along to the chest beating bass as lights reflected from what seemed like every surface of the venue. He stood in front of a “Hollywood Squares”-style backdrop that projected images of neighborhood basketball games and virtual strippers depending on the song. It didn’t take long before he played some of his bigger tracks like “Spend It” and “Crack” and “Riot,” but it was the summer’s anthem “Feds Watching” that stole the show. If you looked left, right, or above, every mouth in the building was mouthing the chorus “I’mma be fresh as hell if the feds watching.”
Few rappers could have the confidence of 2 Chainz after a 2013 that included numerous legal problems. He confidently brushed his shoulders off as Bugle Boy’s voice pierced the theater to signal the opening of “Mercy.” During the track he was joined on stage by his tour mate Pusha T, who ripped through his verse with ease. And this confidence comes from the number of hits that 2 Chainz has accumulated in his career — “Yuck” and the Drake-assisted “No Lie” were soft reminders of this. During “I Luv Dem Strippers,” 2 Chainz showed his appreciation for the song’s namesake by filling the screens on stage with gyrating women. Other hits included “Birthday Song” and the Playaz Circle track “Duffle Bag Boy,” where 2 Chainz (then Tity Boi) drops his famous Thousand Island dressing line.
Now his fourth stop in Denver, audiences here must be used to 2 Chainz tightly scripted performance. After announcing plans for his own Imprint under Universal Music and that he was “starring in a sex tape” set to be released on Netflix, he roared into the track by the same name. Still unconfirmed if we’ll actually get that sex tape but hey, a segue is a segue.
While encouraging the Ogden to “smoke that loud,” 2 Chainz had the crowd in the palm of his hands for the entirety of his set. He appeared in tip-top shape as he took on critics for his prior arrests, explained his disdain for the media (we overheard a teenager explaining to a friend about that famous San Francisco robbery 2 Chainz denied for far too long) and his love for the fans.
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Ru Johnson is an arts and culture music writer living in Denver. You can follow her
Seth McConnell is a member of YourHub at The Denver Post and a regular contributor to Reverb.
