LOX – Money, Power and Longevity (Concert Review)

I was ready for the last concert of this long and busy week.

 

The Arena venue located in downtown Montreal was packed with a much older and different crowd than the two last concerts I attended. The pouring rain didn’t stop these hip hop heads to attend this Rap rendez-vous.

Unlike the Bun B show, the crowd got to enjoy fewer guest performances before the main act arrived. The first group to perform was  E.M.G. a Toronto based rap trio. The group  has already open acts for Pusha-T, M.O.P. and even recorded a song with Spragga Benz, better known as Wayne in 2002’s Shottas. Not bad. Not bad at all.

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Toronto group EMG were the first to perform.

The second performer was Peter Jackson, a Canadian rapper who has been grinding for a few years now. Having toured with Waka Flocka, Juicy J and even French Montana, Jackson still finds time to work  on his music, which you can find on http://www.peterjacksonmusic.ca

 

Around one o’clock , the wait was finally over. After seeing Styles with Sheek or Ghostface with Sheek again it was  time for The LOX to be finally reunited. The music selection was obvious (from a fan perspective) but oh was it reminiscent of the good old days. The trio kicked off the show with New York City  but  took us back to the 90’s era with several hits like All About The Benjamins , Money, Power, Respect and Ride or Die Chick. Since all tree had successful solo careers, if was only right for us to  knock our fists on Jada’s Knock Yourself Out or cross our two arms while singing Locked Up from Styles P. Of course, Sheek Louch’s Good Love is always a good song to make ladies dance.

 

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LOX performing

 

 

It’s a pretty known fact that Styles P loves Montreal weed. What better way to perform his song  I Get High then to distribute cigarillos, blunts and rolling papers to excited fans ? Another great moment of the night was when Styles P (again) jumped out of stage to ride with his fans. Having done that  a few years ago was still surprising to me because this venue is a lot bigger than the previous one. I guess the mass of vultures did not scare the New Yorker.

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Styles P lighting up on stage.

Seeing The LOX together for the first time of Canada was a great hip hop moment for myself and everyone who attended this much anticipated reunion. While some rappers run after money and power, this group proves that respect takes time to built and is the only real proof of success.

 

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Rule number 1: Don’t rub Styles P in the wrong way, even if you’re his number 1 fan.

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Rule number 2:  Message to all Montreal venues : If you’re gonna have a group signing autograph on 300 t-shirts, make sure you have solid tables. Let’s just say hell broke loose at 3 am.

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Rule number 3: no rules…Jadakiss is still cute from his Ruff Ryders day. Muaaa

 

 

 M.U.L.A Grade: 9/10…Can’t wait for these 3 to come back. No beef, just crazy groupies.

 

 

The LOX live – Arena nightclub, Montreal, Friday May 9th 2014

 

If you didn’t know that the famous trio would be in town on Friday night, well now you know.

 

Jadakiss, Styles P and Sheek Louch have been putting out music for the past two decades. It feels like it was yesterday when me and my sister were taping the All About The Benjamins music video on our VHS. Can you believe it’s been seventeen years since L.O.X. danced in shiny gold suits in the Mariah Carey’s Honey (Remix) video. Wow.

The 3 rap gurus sure had their trial and tribulations with Bad Boy. Who hasn’t  though?  Puffy, Sean Combs, Puff Daddy   Diddy, nonetheless has helped the tree New Yorkers launched a successful career by welcoming them to his family. Alongside  Faith Evans, Mary J. Blidge, Lil Kim, Lil Cease and of course the late Biggie Smalls, Bad Boy was one of the most powerful record label in the golden era. At least in the East Coast.

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Released in the late 1990’s , the ”family” album No Way Out sold 7 million albums worldwide.

In 1995, though, another New York family welcomed them with open arms and fitted better with their hardcore music. Joining the Ruff Ryders crew (alongside Eve, DMX, Drag-On and music producer Swizz Beatz) was the best and logical choice the  L.O.X. could have ever made career wise.

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The Ruff Ryders members. Vroom Vroom.

Even after going on hiatus for a few years, we still got to hear from them. Jadakiss and Styles P both had great success with their solo albums like Kiss Tha Game Goodbye (2001) and A Gangster and a Gentleman (2002) respectively. Furthermore, Kiss recently opened a Juice Bar in the Bronx while trStyles P released Invicible , an excellent gangster novel he once wrote on his Blackerry phone.

As for  Sheek Louch, he also managed to release an impressive five albums throughout his solo career. His latest solo effort Donnie G: Don Gorilla (2010) featured hip hop big shots like Fabolous, Bun B and of course his two fellow peers. If you haven’t read my previous concert reviews, well he is now part of  the super rap combo Wu Block  with Wu Tang’s very own Ghostface Killah. In 2012, the duet released a self-titled album which received good critics.

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Me and Sheek at Ghostface Killah show on April 24th.

 

With that being said, you shouldn’t miss their live appearance at Arena nightclub this Friday. Sure, you could see them individually. But seeing them perform as a group will be a premiere in Canada. This is a show you DON’T want to miss.

 

Quick Info

Who:  New York rap group The LOX with special guest performance by canadian rapper Peter Jackson with live band ”The Nicks”

Where: Arena Nightclub, 2313 Sainte-Catherine West (Near Atwater station)

When: Friday, May 9th 2014, doors open at 10pm

How Much: 30$  You can still buy tickets at Off the Hook (1021 St-Cath West) and online at http://www.arenamontreal.com  or http://www.electrostub.com

You should only attend if: The thought of  wearing a shiny suit or get a Ruff Ryder leather jacket crossed your mind, at  least once. If you get teary-eyed or just nostalgic when you think about the 90’s in general.

 

 

See you there !