Jay-Z / Mary J. Blige

In a true testament to the talent of Mary J. Blige, it only took a few songs for her to have the crowd at her fingertips as she injected the ACC with true girl power in just a few verses, more than four sold-out Spice Girls shows combined. "Not Gon’ Cry” and "No More Drama” had the women in the audience singing along word for word, and even despite a large contingent of dudes pounding beers in the concourse waiting for Jigga, she even had some men belting out lines like they were the jilted lovers. And then it was Mr. Carter’s turn. He was his usual suave self, having a grand old time with the live strings and horn section behind him as well as a DJ. "Anybody out there got Reasonable Doubt?” he asked, "Be honest with yourselves,” dedicating "Can I Live” to those that bought his debut album. While it was times like those where he came across as Chairmen of the Board he mixed it part and parcel with his celebrity persona, throwing out newer hits like "Roc Boys” and "Show Me What You Got.” "There’s a lot of love in here,” Jigga Man said towards the end of the set and he was right. No one was cheated, as both Mary J and Jay-Z gave it all they had, and their fans gave it right back. That said, if he is indeed "the Rolling Stones of hip-hop,” like he says he is, at some point in the future Jay-Z owes it to his fans to make an appearance at a reasonably priced show in a tiny venue the size of the El Macombo so we can all really get to the heart of things.