Nas in Central Park: The Concert (and The Bumrush)

August 17, 2004

Nas in Central Park: The Concert (and The Bumrush)

Nas is a very big star, and Central Park Summerstage is a very small space.

Even for most of their standard indie/boho acts you have to get there mad early if you want any chance of getting in and seeing the stage. So with God's Son taking the stage at 3pm, and me doing my radio show the night before, I knew there was no way I'd be making the cut. And since most of the other fans who came wouldn't make it in either, I decided to see how the concert would turn out for all the outsiders looking in.

I got there about 3:45, and the scene was pretty much what I expected. Lots of cops inside an elaborate fortress of iron gates, and hundreds (thousands?) of mildy disgruntled young folks on the outside, hoping and pleading for a last minute shot at the promised land. Some were muttering about getting bamboozled by all the radio promotion, that gave no indication the venue would be so limited. Kids up front were engaged in a spirited discourse with Summerstage staff (see 3rd picture below), but the scene was relatively calm all things considered.

(pardon the namedroppy stuff here, I can't make the story work without it)

A little after 4PM I ran into Easy Mo Bee, who'd brought his daughter along for the show, and as we listened to Kid Capri hype up the crowd Mo Bee was scanning the area for someone who could get him in.. but then the instrumental for "NY State of Mind" started cutting through the park, and the world came to a halt. Mo Bee and I just looked at each other and shook our heads in awe, watching the entire park lose themselves in what might be the nastiest beat ever made.

That beat is just nasty as hell. Like, Make That Mean Face Like It's Hurting You nasty. Punch A Hole In The Wall And Then Throw Your Couch Out The Window nasty. Or in this case, Jump Over The Gates And Rush Past The Cops Like Bulls In Pamplona nasty.

Almost instantly we saw a mob rush the gates over on the left side, sending the cops in a mad dash to head them off. Then everyone around us realized our side was unguarded now, and the onslaught began in full. Parents were even pulling their little kids along with them into the breach (note young girl in the 3rd pic below).

I was worried things would get mighty ugly at this point, but I gotta say the cops showed a lot of restraint, from what I saw. They almost seemed to be letting it happen, and waiting for the rush to die down before they started pushing the latecomers back out (apparently there was only one arrest). So most of the bumrushers made it in successfully, and the those who got repelled seemed ready to accept their fate, as we heard Nas get on the mic to settle things down and start the show. "Yo, wherever the fire exits are, please let the devils clear that shit out!" he implored. "Let's show them it's all peace up in here."

This led into a jumbled political rant where Nas explained that "the white man is a genius-motherf**ker, and we shouldn't be mad at him for that!" Then he encouraged everyone not to vote, because "look at who's running? Bush and Kerry, two devils. Neither one of them niggas want to do nothing for us. We should only vote when one of us is running, from our community."

A few days before I'd heard Nas on the radio professing a certain respect for Bush because "at least he is gangsta," and he echoed that sentiment here: "Bush is gonna win though, cuz he's gangsta. Unless he decided he's made enough money already, so he wants to let Kerry start taking care of all this work."

Thankfully he got the speechifying out of his system pretty quickly, and the show got underway. Nas has never been known as the best live performer, but he brought a lot more energy than usual this time, and the guest appearances kept the crowd hyped throughout. From the outside listening in, it seemed like a solid show. Here's the setlist, possibly missing a song or two:

Represent

It Ain't Hard To Tell

One Love - with the show's first guest appearance, from Q-tip. Tip told Nas how much he values his work because "you rap about all 360 degrees of life, and it takes so much courage to do that."

Life's A Bitch and Phone Tap - with AZ

Eye For An Eye - with Mobb Deep, for whom Nas stepped aside so they could rock that new Thomas Dolby Joint.

If I Ruled the World - This was the biggest shock of the day, as Lauryn Hill appeared on stage in a hooded monk's robe, accompanying herself on a sitar while she held down the chorus. Then she made alittle speech about how when her new album comes out she won't be accepting any manmade money for it, and it will only be on sale for "spirit dollars." Okay, none of that actually happened.

Hate Me Now - with Busta for some reason

Oochie Wally - come on man, we were trying to forget you did that to us

Got Urself A Gun

Get Down - after this Nas said "there's a song that I don't do no more, but I think that NY deserves this" and to the crowd's delight he went into:

Ether - after which he acknowledged "I got love for that brother [Jay Z]."

Thief's Theme - Then the first minute or so of "Apache," which of course segued into

Made You Look - which has gotta be his best song post-illmatic. He probably should have ended here, cuz the energy seemed to drop off as he closed with

I Can - and then

One Mic

And then we all started on our way back through the park, about as happy as you can be with a show you didn't actually see.

(Peace to Hashim of hiphop.blogs.com, whom I also ran into.)

Posted by jsmooth995 at August 17, 2004 07:21 AM | TrackBack

Comments

funny story and great pics. I was on the opposite side of the park when the stampede took place and saw all of the helicopters and stuff. good vibe but a lot of surly youth...nas is crazy!

Posted by: Yojimbot at August 17, 2004 10:54 AM

Nice description and as always, sick photographs. 'Made You Look' into 'I Can'... WTF? Talk about a momentum killer. I believe that Tori Amos accepts "spirit dollars" as well. LOL.

Posted by: jesse at August 17, 2004 11:10 AM

Apparantly Nas doesn�t see the irony in applauding W�s gangsta� but these cats do.
http://in8.com/fucknewyork/Resources/fucknewyork.mov

Posted by: rio rocket at August 17, 2004 12:21 PM

your link to me doens't lead anywhere...

I was very interested if he was going to perform any songs from his "fallen off" albums. Oochie was the only one. Plus they started playing Owe Me Back and he said "Turn that off, I don't want to do that song"

Posted by: Hashim at August 17, 2004 05:10 PM

LMAO @ parent rushing gates with daughter. that's real right there. I was planning on going but waking up @ 12 something in the afternoon wasn't gonna cut it.

So Lauryn didn't show up? i heard she got a new album dropping next month. One thing that bothered me was some sites(read HHS)stating that the Nas/Jay beef is still strong.

Posted by: quimby at August 17, 2004 06:17 PM

Yo Jay, i was at the show waiting right were you posted pic 3 with the people talking to the security staff in orange shirts, i was able to skip in as did many but they wouldn't let none of us in, it was type wild and i felt like some shit was going to break out, the cops was asking this one brother for ID, he asked the cop why you want my ID, the cop said "because if you start a riot,i'm gonna come arrest you at your house tomorrow", i was with my girl and it was jammed packed in there and raining and a stampede almost broke out several times, every time they would let some people in, the people in the back would bumrush and try to go in, i didn't get a chance to get in, me and my girl just decided to leave, it was worth a try but it wasn't worth getting stepped on, getting my sneakers and pants muddy, possible getting arrested, they got that shit set up badly, but i would have loved to see Nas, i'm surprised he has all of those guests, that is awesome, i thought him and Mobb Deep or Prodigy had beef, i guess they squashed it for the better, who knows maybe it was all exxagerated to make money, espeically the one with Jay-z, but who knows. Thanks for the pics and your accounts, that shit was crazy wild, Sallam brother.

Posted by: Intifada at August 17, 2004 10:28 PM

It's funny how hard people will work to get into a "free" show.

Posted by: eric at August 17, 2004 11:06 PM

Seeing that set list makes you realize how many hits, not just underground favorites, Nas really has.

Rio Rocket: Someone else sent me that link too and I, like Hashim, couldn't get it to work. What is it?

Posted by: ian at August 18, 2004 11:41 AM

yo i must've been standing right around you cause i remember that fat dude trying to explain shit to the people. yo i was one of the kids that bum rushed the show. i was walking towards the entrance when the madness happened. fuck that it was my last day in ny york so i had to get in. i waited 3 hours in line and got rained on and my jordans got muddy. check some of the show pics on my blog peace.

Posted by: pickin boogers at August 19, 2004 02:04 PM

He's playing Bumbershoot here in Seattle in a couple weeks--in a football stadium, so there should be less gate-rushing than at Central Park. Public Enemy is opening. It's gonna be NUTS. >:-)

Posted by: Matos W.K. at August 19, 2004 03:56 PM

Ny state of mind nastiest beat ever? whoa, son. How bout who shot ya and take it personal.

Posted by: pexdiggy at August 21, 2004 12:06 PM

Common sense, and simple mathematics: free concert = get there early or your behind ain't gettin in. You know if you aint payin no $$ outta pockets that mean you gotta pay wit time and get up early so you could get in. The show was hot especially since it was free, plus he bought out Mobb Deep and Busta. I dont know how many artists do that for free. It was rained a lil but it felt good to be there the vibe inside was nice. And as far as callin Bush gangsta. I dont think he met it in a contradictory way. Bush gettin into office was mad gangsta as far as votes not getting counted and all that bull. So if he pushed his way in once im sure he could do it again. And its the truth. The only thing that changes every four years may be the candidate in office. But we face the same issues year after year. The Government and voting is all a joke but they force you into believing your one vote matters. The US is supposed to be soo unified, but you have the republicans and the democrats that can�t come into agreement with anything, than they put each otha down. They waste millions on campaigns that could go toward bettering the people rather than gaining publicity. Plus they have all these scandals. Presidency is bout fame, title, who you are, how articulate you are (oh how articulate the person that writes your speeches is), and how much $$ you got. You cant tell me that the president truly cares about ME and my problems. Presidency is more bout fame if you ask me. A president is only human. And all man has done is lead man to his downfall. There is no man alive that has it in his power to fix mankind�s problems.

Posted by: Natasha at August 24, 2004 03:50 PM

I was one of people who actually made it into the concert and I had know idea it was like that out there because it was all love inside. And the concert was off the hook.

Posted by: yvonne at August 24, 2004 04:02 PM

nas yo is de one,funny shit,stand for true bp from nigeria,one of de stun nigga we are with on de ship onshore sailing to vahala,oyen oh!oh!

Posted by: barasua at August 24, 2004 10:34 PM

nas yo is de one,funny shit,stand for true bp from nigeria,one of de stun nigga we are with on de ship onshore sailing to vahala,oyen oh!oh!

Posted by: barasua at August 24, 2004 10:34 PM

living in texas

Posted by: barasua at August 24, 2004 10:35 PM

My mother and I went to the concert, however we did not get in. But it was cool. When they started bumrushing, I wanted to for real, but my moms was with me and it would not of been a good look. So we chilled outside and just listened to his sexy voice, it was satisfying enough. When its free you gotta be there early. Nas keep doing your thing you are the best rapper alive and thats that.

Posted by: Simone at August 24, 2004 11:20 PM

Nas, will always be my favorite rapper of all time. I can't wait till the new abomb to drop. As far as all the reveiws I'm getting from his last show in NY, every body is giving love.

Posted by: LennD at August 25, 2004 01:35 PM

anyone got pics of the concert?????????????

Posted by: asif at August 25, 2004 01:54 PM

I was up at 8AM, but invited some friends who were apparently not on the level I was as far as being sure to see the show. They stalled out my treck with pitstops, their haze moking (while i waited in my car downstairs) and "having to go pick up so and so"...so I didnt find parking until 11:20 AM...and I was in line by 11:30 am...where I remained for like 4 friggin hours (most of my so called buddies were disloyal to the cause and merked off after 2 hours to go to the Jersey city PR Parade) in the rain..as the line grew steadily wider..starting a doublefile and ending up being a mass expanse of some 100 niccas wide...there were too many poeple there breaking rules..cutting line, jumping over stuff...so if u were playing it square like me..then u ended up watching from a park bench on the back of the stage. I truly felt like I was one of the ones who deserved to be in there.

Nas has put out hundreds of street classics that never made it to a Sam Goody's or local record store, but I have them all. I recall being on the bench outside our buildings when I was 16..recording him offf of Bobbito. We grew up together...virtually..in that everytime his outlook or inner vision mmatured...mine also did right alongside his. His artistry and gift for painting pictures verbally is unmatched. GOD Bless him. Maybe one day I can meet him. the closest I ever got was at the Palladium in like 95 or 96 when he brught out Biggie, TWINS, Raekwon, Ghost, AZ and Cormega..it was ridiculous..and all for $20 with a few thousand ladies in free to add to that. the club scene will never been the scene and officially died in 98. Glad i got to grow up during the times I did.

PEACE

Posted by: VIGILANTE at August 25, 2004 02:08 PM

yo man i wanted to go see dat shit that morning but shit aint work out 4 me but hey Nas is my nigga best rapper/poet alive. I think Nas should say doing his thing and also make his next cd with AZ they prolly would go 3X..more but hey lets hope Nas put da Ego aside and let AZ rock mic beside him the way we all know he can ON A WHOLE FUCK DA FIRM NATURE AND FOXY MOST DEFLY CORMEGA AND JUST STAY MAKING REAL TRACKS WITH AZ also Bravehearts is weak Horse shouldn't have been dropped and Nayshawn should get more time on da mic

Posted by: s. jones at August 25, 2004 07:33 PM

When u live in the southern part of central Africa,NaS lives in CDs
Seen some pics at the concert, that musta been some show
Lauryn Hill was there 2? We waitin 4 her album
U fellas in NY consider urselves lucky
NaS u my boy, waitin 4 tha Bomb to drop !!

Posted by: yonah at August 26, 2004 03:09 AM

I just wanna put my two sense in. I along with 5 young kids were the first on line to see Nas. We got to Central Park at 4 in the morning. Yeah I was buggin' out going into the park at that time but you know what it was worth it. Nas tore the house down. He gotta be one of if not the best performers out. Forget about all the dancing and stuff. This was straight lyrical gangsta music. And for free. Come on. Did Jay ever do that. How about 50. Nobody on that level ever has done something like Nas. For that I give him much love and respect. He is officially the King of NY. RIP Big. One

Posted by: T.J at August 26, 2004 05:08 PM

YO NAS IS BY FAR THE MOST TALENTED MC EVER. IM OVER HERE IN IRAQ, STILL LISTEN TO YOUR MUSIC MAN. I LOVE WHAT YOU'RE DOING KEEP BRINGING IT. HOPEFULLY IF I MAKE IT OUT THIS HELL HOLE, ILL BE AT YOUR NEXT CONCERT. MUCH BLESSING TO YOUR FAMILY. ONE LUV

SPC BRADLEY FOR STRIKE FORCE-KILL THE ENEMY
HOOAH

Posted by: SUP NASTY NAS at August 26, 2004 09:30 PM

yeah,nas is tha best as far as rap music is concerned here in nigeria,to us any other rapper is a counterfeit,he gives us what we like,and i can't point out a jam of his and call it wack,all them shit was hot man,right 4rm illmatic down to godsson,the shits aree real heavy,waiting 4 da bomb(streetdisciple) to drop.

Posted by: kamal at August 29, 2004 01:18 PM

men nas u d realest rapper ever seen ireally feel ur lyrics very much especially ether and rewindin stillmatic.dont listen to jayz cos that nigga is a pussy nigga i hate that nigga he should realize how many classics u gave him.bye i love u always i was at ur last concert in newyork where u featured jadakiss and ludacris.

Posted by: yinkafalase at August 30, 2004 06:44 AM

hello [ls tell me more about what happend at the show i wasn ' t there and i will love 2 chat with nas pls tell me the day any time he will be online thanks

Posted by: henry steveson at August 30, 2004 01:43 PM

Just wanted to say that concert was off the hook, there was so much energy coming from Nas. It was my first time seeing him perform and i came all the way from Philly. I got to say it was worth it and I would do it again. Nas you keep doin the damn thing. -1-

Posted by: Meka at August 30, 2004 03:52 PM

AYO THIS CONCERT WAS THE BEST CONCERT EVER!!! I WAS THERE AT 12PM AND I COULD NOT MAKE IT IN THATS HOW PACKED IT WAS

Posted by: CHRISTIAN at September 1, 2004 07:01 PM

Nas is too hard

Posted by: dopemand at September 2, 2004 12:36 PM

Nas took this game to its threshold

Posted by: mark okpala at September 2, 2004 12:40 PM

The concert at the central park was some real live stuff i bet. Y'all know Nas is the G.O.D.S.O.N fo'real.Keep up the good work bro cuz aint none that you drop is wack.It's all luv for you right in Zimbabwe.We aint tripping off any fake niggas shit.HOLLA.

Posted by: Tongai at September 3, 2004 10:19 AM

I saw someone ask if anyone had pics, here is a link to some pics I took at the concert.

http://f1.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/ndennifer/album?.tok=phlR8rBBFCP4DVsu&.dir=/a229&.src=ph

Posted by: Natasha at September 3, 2004 09:45 PM

Well i couldn't make it to tha concert, because it's far from my hood in Lithuania, but i bought NAS' DVD and was f*ckin' high all the time... Nas is the only rapper nowadays who keeps it real, im glad he told that thing 'bout 50cent during tha concert, letting them lil' bitches know, that he ain't nothing but a fake rapper... Peace out Nas... One love... Lithuania is witcha...

Posted by: Kesha at September 6, 2004 02:38 AM

G-O-D-S-O-N K-I-N-G O-F N.Y.C
Ayo n thats fo sho, u c my man rip it, ooohhh!! good lookin "nasty", yo n thanks 4 tha cutz thatz in my box "one mic" iz always on repeat ya hurd.

...lol, ayo i think i saw jigga in that line!!!

peace yOunG sPy

Posted by: SPYRO at September 9, 2004 04:02 AM

Yo wat can i say dats my nigga. who u know can come wit some of da stuff he says and still feel luv 4rm da hood? He always keeps it real and dats y ill always bump his shit.

Posted by: Big Trev at September 15, 2004 12:37 PM

whats up my man nas
how are you i hope is cool.

Posted by: amir dicko at September 16, 2004 03:24 PM

nas you are great,there is no compitition on that.

Posted by: mlela mgana at September 20, 2004 03:56 AM

spread ya voice to da whole world baby.

Posted by: nastro gee at September 20, 2004 08:15 AM

nasir jones oludare a.k.a nas ur d illiest ;no competition cus ur the realist........from u greatest fan out here......... pablonas

Posted by: pablo nas at September 23, 2004 04:54 AM

ayo nas u bring a hot verse on erything even tho tha song might not be bangin fareal. but damn son wats really good do a cd wit AZ word up. "hit tha record sto, neva let em go, get tha whole collection...yo"

Posted by: b. nice at September 24, 2004 01:43 AM

yo that concert was the shit. i was the only one there who got a video camera in. i only missed his first song "ny state of mind" and his last 2 songs "one mic" and "i can" (damn battery went dead) but it was off the hook and i'm the only human being on the planet that has over 20 songs of that concert on video... holla back, dj pimp

Posted by: dj pimp at September 25, 2004 02:13 AM

holla at me boogiebob62@yahoo.com

Posted by: dj pimp at September 25, 2004 02:16 AM

Nas is the one of, if not the greatest MC of our era. I really respect his legacy and would encourage any inspiring MC to learn from the GOD. Everybody keep saying he's a hypocrite, but what rapper isn't a hypocrite? I'm from Miami and grew up on Bass Music and Luke, but I've grown to love the essence of hip hop which is Nas, Wu-Tang, and various others. Nas thanks for the classics and music from the heart. I'll make sure when "Streets Disciple" drops I 'll cop two. (You really should drop a album with AZ, the streets are requesting it!)

Posted by: KeithJ at September 26, 2004 03:53 PM

Yo. peace 2 nas and madd love to mobb deep. Nas,Prodigy and Hav I love yall.

Posted by: yangbludd at October 4, 2004 07:11 PM

i'VE BEEN FEELIN ALMOST ALL RAPPERS FROM QUEENS....BUT NAS IS ON TOP..YOU GOT MY VOTE AND MANY OTHERS OUT HERE IN VA

Posted by: STEPHEN at October 10, 2004 08:34 PM

Ayo nas.............i need a job.....i got a degree in sociology bout to get my master's in marketing/finance.........holla at me...........i've been rockin with u since the late eighties............whatever man i'll work for free to show my talents.........one

Posted by: Ill Will at October 13, 2004 01:58 PM

YO NAS , YOU THE TIGHTEST MC I HAVE EVER KNOWN , IAM 19 YRS , AND I TELL YOU THIS I HAVE BEEN FEELING YOUR MUSIC SINCE I WAS REAL YOUNG, IAM YOUR BIGGEST FAN HERE IN NIGERIA FOR REAL , I SOMETIMES GET SLAPPED FOR GIVING YOU THE PROPS..ONE LOVE BIG BRO...AND F**K JAY-Z

Posted by: taiwo at October 17, 2004 10:31 PM

NAS ..I LOVE YOU SO MUCH AS A BROTHER, THEY THINK I HAVE GONE NUTS IN MY HOUSE, I JUST LOVE THE WAY YOU PUT THE WORDS INTO RAP..ONE LOVE...YOUR BIGGEST FAN IN NIGERIA

Posted by: oluseye hunter at October 17, 2004 10:38 PM

Dude why you gotta play with us like that, I was all about to start savin Spirit Dollars...haha. :P

And YES to NY STATE OF MIND. Unnnngghh. [throws computer out the window]

Posted by: tvu at October 28, 2004 01:26 PM

Yo nas wut up u always will be da realest rapper out there and i been looking 4 all yo albums in stores cause me and da homies need 2 get at those albums.. assaalamalakam

Posted by: imdaprovider at November 1, 2004 02:58 PM

o yea and i understand where u be cumin 4rom and fuck all dem fake ass niggas like jigga cause he aint on yo level. I also understand that its hard bein who u are and knowin wut u no especially in a country wit so much ignorance cause im surrounded by ignorant ass people that dont wanna c u rise. i also understand now through u that everywhere u go will always be envy

Posted by: imdaprovider at November 1, 2004 03:07 PM