Someset House: Lupe Fiasco

After missing out on Lupe' this year at Glastonbury, there was no way I was going to make the same mistake twice! After finding out the super cool rapper was going to be performing at the open air Somerset House on July 14 I was first in line for a ticket! On arrival I was drawn to the stage by supporting act Ava Leigh. Her vocal style was very soulful paired with reggae beats which seemed to work well and warmed the crowd nicely for the main event. After a short intermission, the man everyone had come to see, Lupe Fiasco burst on to the stage like an exploding pyrotechnic. The crowd went ballistic! It was so deafening that before I knew it hed already started performing the Food and Liquor classic Kick, Push which had everyone reciting it word for word. The gig continued in the same vein- high energy from the Chicago rapper backed up with amazing vocals from Sarah Green and Matthew Santos. Their great band also performed with the utmost adrenaline needed to mirror Lupes crowd pleasing intentions. Jumping between anthems from his first album as well as his latest offering The Cool seamlessly, Fiasco rarely stopped to catch his breath but never lacked stage presence or looked out of control. He even had a swagger that his fellow Chi-Town Superstar Kanye West would be proud of! Gotcha, The Coolest, Hip Hop Saved My life and Go Go Gadget were all met with hands in the air accompanied by a sea of illuminated mobile phones all trying to capture the fans favourite moments of this great performance. The stand out tracks on the night for me were High Definition- which is a personal favourite- and then the trio including Paris, Tokyo, Daydream and Superstar. That massive single got the most hype on stage with excellent little cameos from the band as well as Sarah Green and Matthew Santos on the vocals. With the likes of Kelly Rowland (along with the rest of the crowd) enjoying what can only be described as a super-set, Lupe Fiasco rocked Somerset House to its foundations. For me, it was a true example of Real Hip Hop at its best. REVIEW BY: Rickie MTV NEWS