Wu-Tang forever

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This article was published 10/10/2023 (953 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Wu-Tang Clan and Nas brought a taste of the five boroughs to Winnipeg Tuesday night with a cinematic show full of time-honored hits and hip-hop history.

The nine-piece Staten Island collective has been on the road with fellow East Coast rap icon Nas since last fall, co-headlining stadiums around the world on their N.Y. State of Mind Tour. De La Soul — also hailing from New York State — joined the lineup for the North American leg.

In hip-hop’s 50th anniversary year, it’s a fitting form of global outreach by some of the biggest names from the artform’s birthplace. (Hip-hop traces its roots to a house party in the Bronx in 1973, when DJ Kool Herc reportedly coined the genre’s signature rhythmic sound by working two turntables simultaneously.)

Tuesday’s concert at Canada Life Centre was slightly bigger than a house party, with roughly 6,000 people in attendance, but just as enthusiastic.

DJ Scratch, a Brooklyn-based “turntablist,” took the stage prior to the openers to set the scene as fans slowly trickled into the arena. Playing a mix of modern and old school hip-hop tracks — such as 1979’s Rapper’s Delight by The Sugarhill Gang — and asking how many in the audience grew up with VHS tapes and flip phones (plenty), he closed by encouraging a standing ovation “for hip-hop.”

The retrospective celebration continued with a reconfigured De La Soul.

Founding member David Jolicoeur, stage names Trugoy the Dove and Plug Two, died in February at the age of 54. In Winnipeg, rapper Talib Kweli filled the vocal hole, joining the group’s remaining members Kelvin Mercer (Posdnuos) and Vincent Mason (Maseo) for a quick and bouncy 20-minute set.

The group blasted through three decades of music, starting with Potholes in My Lawn off De La Soul’s debut 1989 album, 3 Feet High and Rising, and closing with a remix of Three is a Magic Number flanked by black and white photos of Jolicoeur.

The main event opened in educational fashion, with a short video honouring the founding of hip-hop and Wu-Tang’s place in the canon.

RZA entered first, taking his place behind a glass podium set atop a two-tiered stage encased in video screens. Surrounded by a live band wearing black-and-white Wu-Tang hoodies, the group’s “abbot” proceeded to introduce the seven other members in attendance: GZA, Inspectah Deck, Cappadonna, Raekwon (who lit up a fat blunt to cheers from the crowd), U-God, Masta Killa and Young Dirty Bastard. The latter is the eldest son of ‘Ol Dirty Bastard, a founding Wu-Tang member who died in 2004.

Each rapper took a brief turn at the mic, flipping through signature songs in Wu’s extensive catalogue, such as GZA’s Liquid Swords and Raekwon’s Incarcerated Scarfaces. The accompanying videos ranged from music video snippets to scenes from martial arts movies — a central tenet of the group’s brand.

The collective cleared out for Nas, who took to the stage wearing black shades and a bomber jacket. The tour is a true co-headlining effort, with each name on the marquee given equal time in the spotlight throughout the show.

With only a backing DJ and drummer, Nas gave an engaging, energetic performance filled with videos and photos of his home borough of Brooklyn. The artist got the whole crowd standing, with many on the floor moving into the aisle to get closer to the action for hits like N.Y. State of Mind.

Wu returned with a surprise appearance from Method Man, who revealed himself to an extended roar from the crowd following Wu-Tang Clan’s Ain’t Nuthing Ta F’ Wit off the group’s debut 1993 album, Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers). Method Man has missed much of the current tour due to scheduling conflicts.

The boisterous frontman injected some much-needed energy into the group’s stage presence, leading singalongs of Hot Boyz, a Missy Elliot cover, and C.R.E.A.M. (Cash Rules Everything Around Me).

Wu-Tang’s second act was more memorable than the first.

Nas’s was equally so. The 50-year-old rapper bounded back on stage without missing a beat, performing If I Ruled the World (Imagine That) in epic fashion before passing the mic back to RZA for an in-memoriam interlude recognizing some of the the hip-hop greats who had died over the last 50 years and featuring an off-key rendition of Gangsta’s Paradise. The genre’s anniversary was a running touchpoint for everyone on stage.

Wu-Tang closed the two-and-a-half hour show by pulling the whole ensemble on stage, including Nas. There was no encore. Wu-Tang and hand symbols cheers rippled throughout the concourse as the crowd filed out.

eva.wasney@winnipegfreepress.com

X: @evawasney