Tag: Hip Hop

Allgemein, Concerts

Black Eyed Peas are better than ever!

kekoaskorner

Black Eyed Peas are back and they are better than ever! Why? Because now they are a band of brothers again that know how to get the crowd going. They formed a unity, created an amazing set and still know how to party. The masters of the sun rocked the Hallenstadion and to all the people who didn’t go just because that lady isn’t in the group anymore – too bad, you missed out!

Embracing Technology

Taboo, Apl.de.ap and Will.i.am are into technology and I love it! Artists who are moaning about people in the audience pointing phones at their faces annoy me. I agree sometimes during a beautiful ballade it can be a bit too much. However BEP managed to embrace this trend and used it to their advantage. Before the show they told us to download the tour app and during certain songs we enjoyed an AR experience which was incredible and soooo much fun!!! 😀
BEP
First things first: The Black Eyed Peas came on stage showed us that they are “Back 2 Hip Hop”. The guys rapped superbly and I just felt sooo happy to see them again after 7 years! I still remember their sold out Hallenstadion show like it was yesterday. I really wished that they would start with “Let’s get it started” and they fulfilled my wish 🙂 I was up dancing and some other people on the seats were too! One of my fav song is “Imma Be” and yes the song got stuck in my head all night. “Imma Be” turned into “Rock that body” in one swift go. More and more people were caught up again the world of the BEP and started dancing and enjoying themselves. The electronic vibe continued with Boom Boom Pow”.

Welcome Jessica Reynoso

Of course the three guys needed some female vocals and they found it in Jessica Reynoso. Apl.de.ap found her on the Voice of Philippines and made her part of the crew for the Masters of the sun tour. What an amazing chance and the lads gave her room to shine which I thought was lovely. With “Just Can’t get enough” and “Shut up” the Black Eyed Peas continued their hit set. I really loved how much they seemed to enjoy themselves and this naturally transferred itself onto the audience. Everyone had a good time! The stage was set as a huge pyramid with the band playing on level 3 and BEP’s singing on level 2 and 1. They seemed so together and performed in a group which I didn’t feel like that did back in 2010.


For the next one they said the UK peeps went absolutely mental and I think the Swiss audience did quiet a good job too. During “Pump it” there was even a small mosh pit on the side. There was enough space that different groups of people could actually dance or mosh how they wanted. Those gigs are the best! Good atmosphere, space to dance makes for an overall brilliant gig. “Pump it” marked the end of the first hit act.

Act 2 – May we introduce the new BEP

If you watched the Voice UK you’ve noticed that Will.i.am uses the word dope a loot. So this new song “Dopeness” comes as no surprise to me 😀 The new songs are really more hip-hopy again. “Ring the alarm” and “Constant” followed. The pyramid stage actually served as a huge screen and the projections were incredible. But this was topped during the next song. It was time to get out phones and activate the MOTS-app. During “Big Love” we were able to send heart towards the stage. It was so much fun sending as much hearts as I could. I couldn’t stop laughing and the song was over way too soon 😀


Black Eyed Peas remixed “Dum Diddly” from their debut record with “Mi Gente” and it made for a great party song. After this it was time for each Black Eyed Pea to step into the spotlight by themselves. Taboo was up first. He told us that he’s been battling cancer the last four years and is now super grateful to be back on stage. I was shocked! He smoothlessly rapped to “Rocking the Beat” and deserved the huge applause that followed. Apl.de.ap was up next with “Bebot” and Jessica took the spotlight with a Beyoncé cover “Love on Top”. And finally Will.i.am took the stage with a medley of “This is love”/”#thatPower”/”Scream & Shout”

Final Act – Party on

It was clear that with “Don’t Stop the Party” and “The Time (Dirty Bit)” the Black Eyed Peas wanted us to party on. Almost everyone were on their feet rocking out! Their breakthrough hit “Where is the love?” is still very current and I had goosebumps while they performed it. If you think about it, it’s unbelievable. BEP released it in 2003 and 15 years later it still sounds like it’s written just this year. To finish this amazing performance we needed to get our phones out again to enjoy the AR experience 😀 With “I Got A Feeling” a huge pyramid dance floor stage was projected on top of the actual pyramid stage and the lights on the phone added to the lights on stage and it really was an incredible experience. We were jumping up and down with out phones – sooo much fun 😀

dav
Where is the love?

Have you experienced the MOTS-Tour or have you ever witnessed an AR experience? Share your story here or on Instagram.

Check out my latest gigs: Walking on Cars, Jason Derulo, John Legend

 

Allgemein, Concerts

Party Night at Baloise Session with Kool & the Gang and Dabu Fantastic

kekoaskorner

It’s Friday night and it’s party time! That’s why tonight’s motto “Let’s celebrate” fits perfectly and is a perfect match for these two artists: Kool & the Gang and Dabu Fantastic. Please click here to read more of my interview with the latter. Again I’d like to mention that the staff at Baloise Session is incredibly friendly and helpful! Plus the concerts shown on the screen is a treat. They chose Parov Stelar again who will be coming to Samsung Hall on 9th March!
Dabu Fantastic
First up was Dabu Fantastic. They are a band from Zurich singing in Swiss German. Even if you don’t understand the lyrics you gotta see them live. Their energy is off the chain and they are super entertaining. Unfortunately it’s only been the 2nd time I’ve seen them live. The first time was at a free concert on a float at Badi Enge. It was an magical gig and a lot of fun. They started with “Autobahn” and “Grosse MC” which was mixed with one of my favourites “Vo Vorn”. This song is perfect for a gig! “Vo Vorn” means to start again so it makes perfect sense to say let’s start again.


The 3rd song was “MsG” – Mir seget Grüezi which is a translation of the German Fanta 4 song “MfG”. They did a whole set with those kinda song and in my interview you’ll hear about Fanta 4’s reaction. Next up was “Schön” and “Fredi” before they got a bit quieter and mellowed down a bit for “Min Ort”/ “My place”. It is a beautiful ballade about Dabu’s hometown. You don’t expect these guys to be able to do slow but they really can do slow! Just before they suddenly vanished they played a song called “Maybach”.
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Suddenly Dabu and DJ Arts showed up on a B-stage in the middle of the room. They had a short old school break where just the two of them were doing their thing 🙂 On the way back they were dancing with the audience. Another favourite moment of mine was when they remixed Ed Sheeran’s “Shape of you” and KRS-One “Sound of da Police” and replaced it with Jeans and made it to their own song. Such a funny song! Before the next song “Hässlich”/”Ugly” they announced that either we have to dance really bad or really good and the best people get a shirt for free! 🙂 And yes, people were dancing or the posh people sitting where trying their best. One lady won and she put the shirt right on and stood on a chair. How great is that??!!
Dabu Fantastic
Just before the encore we enjoyed “Paradiis and Het Sie Xeh”. They came back just to say “Gang Jetz” which means “Off you go” and they remixed it with another Swiss artists “Brütigam” by Dodo. And lastly the song a lot of people have been waiting for – their “Angelina”. It basically is about a relationship where it’s working on top of each other but not next to each other if you know what I mean 😉

Will mir händ so viel Liebi zge
Als wär das öppis wos Läbe lang hebt
Aber morn bisch wider weg
Will ufenand gats aber näbenand nöd

I was ready to take pictures of Kool & the Gang but I wasn’t really ready for this! The 11 musicians took the stage and their energy just blew me away! But I wasn’t the only one within seconds they’ve managed to get the people standing and the security had problems keeping them back for the first 3 songs. They started with “Fresh” and I took pictures but I was also singing. I guess that looked quite funny so the lads on stage smiled at me a few times. A singing photographer must be new to them too 😉
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Shawn McQuiller and Lavell Evans and Walter Anderson switched the lead vocals between each other. Plus the latter took to play the keys a few times. It is incredible how versatile all these musicians are. I expected old men on stage but they managed to bring on the new generation too! In “Tonight” and “Too Hot” the guys showed off their dancing skills and the people in the audience were too. As soon as the security released them onto the dancing floor I had to flee! I’ve never experienced anything like it and thankfully there was a tiny space left out for the camera which I fled into. I really didn’t envy the camera guys’ job that night! 🙂


 
The crowd was on fire that night. We were dancing, singing and just having a good time. These incredible musicians were giving it their best and you could sense it. “Joanna” and “Open Sesame” was next and during “Jungle Boogie” I found myself way back onto the dance floor. The boys were dancing in sync to Hollywood Swinging and it just looked incredible and by then I knew that it was going to be a very good gig. For all the lovers in the house Kool & the Gang played their huge hit “Cherish” and the lights of the phone and lighters went up.

What followed can only be described as a huge party and everyone joined in to celebrate this wonderful evening. With “Let’s Go Dancing” we were turned into a big backing choir to sing the “Oh la la la’s”. Now the next song they sang for all the beautiful ladies in the house:

Oh, yes, it’s Ladies’ Night
And the feeling’s right
Oh, yes, it’s Ladies’ Night
Oh, what a night (oh, what a night)

And the feeling was really right! I think by then everyone at Baloise Session was standing or should I say dancing. “Get Down on it” was so so cool and it was amazing to see these Legends on stage. All those songs were written in the 80’s and I still know them and they can travel the world singing it. This must be the dream of every musician. The final song of the night was of course “Celebration”. What impressed me the most was that the band stayed on stage and shook a lot of hands and said thank you. They do not need to this anymore. They are huge stars and still they thank every person who came out that night.


 
Those are real musicians and are well worth supporting and seeing. I adore artists who show their appreciation and I tend to see those kinda artists more than once. For example Naturally 7 are like that too and they are coming to Zurich next week! After the 3rd night at the Baloise Session I can tell that I am in love with this festival. If you want to read about my first two nights check out Clean Bandit/Goldfrapp and Asgeir/Kaleo.
 
Have you been to the Baloise Session? Let me know in the comments below! 🙂