Mos Def with Jay Electronica
February 3rd at the Independent, San Francisco

Because of my job, people often ask me if I ever get tired of going to concerts. As much as I don’t, I would be lying if I said there are days after work when bed sounds a hell of a lot better than standing up in a crowded club for three hours to see some band I’ve never heard of. That said, those nights are totally counterbalanced by nights like last Wednesday. I got to work Tuesday morning with absolutely no inkling that in 36 short hours I would be seeing one of my Top Three living MCs (alongside Scarface and Brother Ali for those keeping score at home) playing in a small club for about 500 people. So, watching Mos Def take the Independent stage on Wednesday night was undoubtedly a surreal experience.

After some inspired local spoken-word artists and a breathtaking 20-minute performance from freestyle legend Supernatural (Google him), the audience’s energy was boiling over. Armed with his signature bowtie and fedora, Mos Def sauntered on to the stage about 11:30pm, inducing widespread hoots of euphoria. Bed-Stuy’s finest kept the energy up for the totality of his nearly two-hour set, rolling through cuts spanning his entire solo career, from 1999’s watershed Black on Both Sides to his 2009 return to form, The Ecstatic. As all proceeds of the show went to benefit Haiti relief, Mos also gave us some serious food for thought, speaking openly and passionately about the importance of Haiti’s struggle against colonial oppression—it was the first nation in Latin America to gain independence—and the gravity of the island nation’s dire current situation.

Among the show’s many musical highlights were the cuts from his aforementioned fourth solo album, especially the relentless “Life in Marvelous Times” and the Slick Rick-assisted “Auditorium.” Considering the brilliance of most of the 36 year old’s back catalog, it is no small feat that, with everything else on his plate, he continues to write music that stands up to the classics he wrote in his 20s.

About three quarters of the way though his set, he did something that I’ve never see a musician of his stature do. He stopped the show and brought up his protégé, up-and-coming rapper, Jay Electronica. Instead of leaving the stage, Mos rode shotgun and did all he could to big up the emerging artist and keep the crowd engaged. And, wouldn’t you know it? It worked. The New Orleans native absolutely stole the show, spitting intelligent, inventive flows over beats by the likes of the late, great J Dilla and Just Blaze, while staking his claim as one of the most promising young rhymesayers in the game.

After 30 enthralling minutes of Jay E, Mighty Mos reclaimed center stage and gave us another half hour of magic, highlighted by a spirited rendition of the timeless, “Umi Says.” As the crowd spilled out around 1:30am, I was struck by what a privilege it was to see the work of a true genius at the top of his game. I was also reminded of how much I love my job.

Watch: “Umi Says” [at youtube.com]

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