Review: Lil Wayne

The first show at the Sprint Center headlined by a hip-hop star was a spectacular artistic success. The six acts on Lil Wayne's "I Am Music" tour provided over three hours of stylistically diverse and immensely satisfying music to a youthful audience of approximately 12,000.

Since Elton John christened the venue in 2007, a handful of hip hop artists have appeared as opening acts, but Lil Wayne represents the genre's first headliner at the downtown arena.  It was worth the wait.

Lil Wayne's fortunes have skyrocketed since his last area performance: a brief appearance in 2007 at Sandstone opening for Chris Brown and Ne-Yo. He's not just the biggest star in hip hop; Lil Wayne's "Tha Carter III" was the best-selling album of 2008.

Much of Lil Wayne's success is due e to his ability to transcend genre.  During Friday's show he convincingly played the roles of rock star, comedian, R&B vocalist and sex symbol.  And one more thin: He's arguably the world's greatest rapper. 

Many of Lil Wayne's most objectionable lyrics were softened by his disarming, bejeweled smile and playful demeanor. After all, he's practically still a kid. He has been issuing albums since 1999, but Lil Wayne is only 26.

His distinctive rasp and malevolent cackle were complemented by what Lil Wayne correctly described as "my magnificent band."  They spent the night rocketing between the stage and the rafters in individual makeshift elevator shafts.

The superstar trappings didn't end there.  "Fireman" was accompanied by Kiss-worthy pyrotechnics.  Other memorable moments were his delicate crooning on "Prostitute," the addition of arty noise to "I'm Me" and a triumphant version of "A Milli."

"I know you know T-Pain owns the whole radio," T-Pain boasted during his 45-minute set. 

It's not much of an exaggeration.  As with Lil Wayne, T-Pain seems omnipresent on urban and Top 40 radio and music television outlets.  T-Pain made little attempt to faithfully reproduce his slick hits.  Instead, he offered snippets of songs during a manic circus-themed visual extravaganza of dancing and comedy routines.  It worked.  He was remarkably entertaining.

The third time was a charm for Keyshia Cole.  Her flashy performance was vastly more satisfying than her two previous area appearances.  Even more impressive than Cole's energetic singing and dancing was witnessing the way ballads like "Love" and "Sent From Heaven" resonated with her female fans.  A few more hits like those and Cole might be headlining her own arena shows. 

Rock/hip hop hybrid band Gym Class Heroes were fully prepared for the big stage.  Arena-ready hits including "Cupid's Chokehold" went over surprisingly well.  Gorilla Zoe also performed a rushed set.  While Keri Hilson's turn in the spotlight was pleasant, she did little to distinguish herself from Ciara and Rihanna, the two artists she clearly emulates.

Hilson would do well to follow Lil Wayne's lead.  In a hip-hop and R&B scene characterized by oppressive conformity, it's Lil Wayne's unique artistic vision, supported by his vast talent, that makes him the most compelling artist in popular music.

| Bill Brownlee, Special to The Star

Editor's note: We sincerely apologize to fans of Lil Wayne who may want to have an intelligent conversation about our review. However, we've turned comments off this post until the level of conversation is elevated. While any discussion on American music must allow for a discussion of race, we will not accept bigotry and hate here. If you feel you have something to contribute to a discussion about the Lil Wayne show (or music in general), please send your comments to showtime@kcstar.com. Thank you for reading Back to Rockville.