Top Five Must-See Shows This Week
Yeah, yeah, yeah...we get it. Mondays suck (we've read Garfield). But it means the start of a new week, which means a bunch of killer shows in and around Phoenix.
Musiq Soulchild Musiq Souldchild is scheduled to perform Thursday, November 8, at Celebrity Theatre.
And here are a few of the coolest -- our top five must-see shows this week.
Monday, November 5: Waka Flacka Flame @ Celebrity Theatre
Waka Flocka Flame Waka Flocka Flame is scheduled to perform Monday, November 5, at Celebrity Theatre
Waka Flocka Flame has said he writes his lyrics as a way to express the emotions he's feeling at a given time and that they're usually tapped out on the fly on his BlackBerry, rather than in a meticulously curated notebook, as is the case with many rappers. Well, express emotions he sure does. Waka -- a 25-year-old Atlantan named Juaquin Malphurs -- uses his voice less as a means of delivering poetry and more as an instrument of incitement. (To party, to violence, to just let loose, etc.)
His 2009 mixtapes Salute Me or Shoot Me and LeBron Flocka James set the stage for a rapid ascent in hip-hop and a debut studio album, Flockaveli, later that year. Waka's greatest achievement, however, may be in returning hyped-up crowds to mainstream hip-hop concerts. In a genre too often speedbumped by dudes demanding their DJs skip to the next track and killing momentum, Waka's shows come with all the head-banging, moshing intensity of a music video's vision of a rock concert. Maybe that's because the dude's halfway between six and seven feet tall, sports serious dreads, and has an infectious smile.
Want to know what "Waka Flocka Flame" really means? Charisma, most likely.
Waka's Southern brand of tear-the-club-up rap owes a big debt to the minimalist crunk of the late '90s, but it's more fleshed-out, layered, and aggro. Producer South Side is the secret ingredient to the success of Waka's latest album: Triple F Life: Friends, Fans and Family, which boasts guests Nicki Minaj; Chris Brown; Rick Ross; Diddy; Tyler, the Creator; Drake; and Waka mentor Gucci Mane. And while Waka's flow is more natural and nuanced than it was just a few years ago, he's never going to win Best Rapper or Best Lyricist. But then, he wouldn't be the first performer to get by primarily on personal magnetism and solid backing music. Suck it up, naysayers, he's not gonna be the last, either. Do they give out awards for Best Party Starter? Andrew W.K., watch your back.--Chris Hassiotis
Location Info
Venue
Map
Bar Smith
130 E. Washington St., Phoenix, AZ
Category: Music
|
8 user reviews
|
Write A Review |
| Save to foursquare |
|
Email to Friend
Write to Editor
Print Article
