50 years since its inception, hip-hop is alive and well in Calgary. That was clear from the tens of thousands who piled into the Scotiabank Saddledome on October 14 to pay tribute to some of the genre's greatest living legends.
A stacked bill featuring De La Soul and Wu-Tang Clan brought the very best of hip-hop to the Texas of the North. It was a night that solidified their legacy, with a collection of the greatest rappers in the game paying homage to hip-hop's decorated history and their place in it.
With plenty of throwbacks and references to the golden era of '90s hip-hop, the New York State of Mind Tour was both an exploration of living history and a visual spectacle. A peace offering to rappers past and present, the show was eagerly lapped up by the hoards of hip-hop heads who came ready to throw up their hands and honour the Wu.
DJ Scratch
Kicking things old school, DJ Scratch set the tone for the evening by rounding off a brief 30-minute set packed with rap classics. During interludes, he highlighted essential moments in the early developments of the genre, including a tribute to the quintessential "Rapper's Delight," credited for introducing hip-hop to a wider global audience (the song reached number one on the charts in Canada).
"I don't know where y'all was at in 1979 when this shit came out," Scratch quipped. "But I learnt this shit before I learnt my homework. This is like a fifteen-minute rap with no chorus." Hands flew to the air as the crowd bumped along to the track's stompy, sun-soaked beat.
De La Soul were up next, following along in step with their own kaleidoscope of hits. Matched by fuchsia pink and daisy floral graphic visuals that referenced their 1989 debut studio album 3 Feet High and Rising, surviving members Vincent Mason and Posdnuos rolled through '90s favourites "Stakes Is High" and "A Roller Skating Jam Named 'Saturdays'," complete with plenty of call and responses. Later on in the set, a surprise appearance from Brooklyn rap legend Talib Kweli provided support for the gap left behind by the loss of David "Trugoy" Jolicoeur following his death in February 2023.
It was a theme that recurred throughout the evening, though the series of references and memoriams to rap legends lost too soon was more celebratory than haunting in nature. Moving right along into early aughts jam "Rock Co. Kane Flow," the ghost of MF DOOM could be felt throughout the stadium as Posdnuos spit the track's early verses. Even members of the security team couldn't help but tap their feet and bob along to the 1989 single "Me Myself and I."
Ghostface Killah and Inspectah Deck
A hypebeast video honouring the many highs of New York hip-hop set the stage for Wu-Tang's regal entrance. RZA appeared atop a podium, throwing up the Wu-Tang symbol which was diligently saluted by the crowd. He launched into a cover of Nancy Sinatra's "Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)," filled with lyrical alterations detailing the origins and mythos of Wu-Tang Clan in a Tarantino-esque diatribe. With just as much pomp, the legends began appearing on stage in quick succession.
GZA rapped solo verses from 1995's "Liquid Swords," while Inspectah Deck, dutifully bearing the Calgary Flames' current alternate jersey, embraced GZA before following up with his own bars from "Above the Clouds." Raekwon spit fire in a mash up of "Wu Will Survive" and "Incarcerated Scarfaces," then U-God joined in with a group throwback to "Da Mystery of Chessboxin'." Young Dirty Bastard, the son of original member Ol' Dirty Bastard, lit up the stage with his own well of chaotic energy, complete with plenty of high jumps, kicks and leaps. Seamlessly flowing through his late father's verses, his high energy helped him shine on stage amongst the arrangement of decorated stars twice his age.
Ghostface Killah and Cappadonna joined the clan and the group finished out their first set with Enter The Wu-Tang's intro track, "Bring Da Ruckus." Co-headliner Nas sauntered on stage, launching into hit after hit of his own decorated discography. His bars were slick and his flow unmatched as he rounded off singles from his 1994 debut Illmatic. In a highlight of the night, the minimalist bells of "Represent", sampled from Lee Irwin's "Thief of Baghdad," put a spotlight on Nas' air tight verses, a talent untouched and unweathered by the years that have passed since the song's release.
Returning to the stage for set two, Wu-Tang Clan served the audience with exactly what they wanted. Blazing through a nearly two-and-a-half-hour runtime, the crowd got more and more hyped with callbacks to "Wu-Tang Ain't Nuthing Ta F' Wit." Method Man, the remaining absent member of the crew, bounded up on stage in a Yeezy-esque entrance before launching into his own material.
The Long Island rapper brought the room's energy to new heights as he dedicated his titular track from 1993's Enter the Wu-Tang Clan to "all the weed smokers," reminiscent of the blunt that Raekwon had lit up earlier on stage in the clan's grand entrance. Method Man's energy and liquid flow shone on stage as all ten members of Wu-Tang Clan converged, trading sets and one-upping one another with increasingly dense bars. It was a true display of the enduring legacy of these rappers, complete with testaments to the figures who came before and after them who continue to change the game and elevate the culture.
Throughout it all, RZA took time outs to emphasize the relevance of Wu-Tang's victory lap in the 50th anniversary year of the birth of hip-hop. Engaging in history-laden stories that exemplified hip-hop's continued global relevance, RZA seemed slightly awed that the group who emerged from the streets of Staten Island and New York could find their audience in the northern city of Calgary, Canada.
"First of all, hip-hop is not just music, it's a way of life. It's a culture. It inspires the clothing, it's even inspiring fucking food now. It inspires the way that we living," he said as Wu-Tang members nodded along.
"It started in New York, then made its way south, then all the way to the west And now to fucking Canada! And we thank Canada for what hip-hop has brought."
A stacked bill featuring De La Soul and Wu-Tang Clan brought the very best of hip-hop to the Texas of the North. It was a night that solidified their legacy, with a collection of the greatest rappers in the game paying homage to hip-hop's decorated history and their place in it.
With plenty of throwbacks and references to the golden era of '90s hip-hop, the New York State of Mind Tour was both an exploration of living history and a visual spectacle. A peace offering to rappers past and present, the show was eagerly lapped up by the hoards of hip-hop heads who came ready to throw up their hands and honour the Wu.
DJ ScratchKicking things old school, DJ Scratch set the tone for the evening by rounding off a brief 30-minute set packed with rap classics. During interludes, he highlighted essential moments in the early developments of the genre, including a tribute to the quintessential "Rapper's Delight," credited for introducing hip-hop to a wider global audience (the song reached number one on the charts in Canada).
"I don't know where y'all was at in 1979 when this shit came out," Scratch quipped. "But I learnt this shit before I learnt my homework. This is like a fifteen-minute rap with no chorus." Hands flew to the air as the crowd bumped along to the track's stompy, sun-soaked beat.
De La Soul were up next, following along in step with their own kaleidoscope of hits. Matched by fuchsia pink and daisy floral graphic visuals that referenced their 1989 debut studio album 3 Feet High and Rising, surviving members Vincent Mason and Posdnuos rolled through '90s favourites "Stakes Is High" and "A Roller Skating Jam Named 'Saturdays'," complete with plenty of call and responses. Later on in the set, a surprise appearance from Brooklyn rap legend Talib Kweli provided support for the gap left behind by the loss of David "Trugoy" Jolicoeur following his death in February 2023.
It was a theme that recurred throughout the evening, though the series of references and memoriams to rap legends lost too soon was more celebratory than haunting in nature. Moving right along into early aughts jam "Rock Co. Kane Flow," the ghost of MF DOOM could be felt throughout the stadium as Posdnuos spit the track's early verses. Even members of the security team couldn't help but tap their feet and bob along to the 1989 single "Me Myself and I."
Ghostface Killah and Inspectah DeckA hypebeast video honouring the many highs of New York hip-hop set the stage for Wu-Tang's regal entrance. RZA appeared atop a podium, throwing up the Wu-Tang symbol which was diligently saluted by the crowd. He launched into a cover of Nancy Sinatra's "Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)," filled with lyrical alterations detailing the origins and mythos of Wu-Tang Clan in a Tarantino-esque diatribe. With just as much pomp, the legends began appearing on stage in quick succession.
GZA rapped solo verses from 1995's "Liquid Swords," while Inspectah Deck, dutifully bearing the Calgary Flames' current alternate jersey, embraced GZA before following up with his own bars from "Above the Clouds." Raekwon spit fire in a mash up of "Wu Will Survive" and "Incarcerated Scarfaces," then U-God joined in with a group throwback to "Da Mystery of Chessboxin'." Young Dirty Bastard, the son of original member Ol' Dirty Bastard, lit up the stage with his own well of chaotic energy, complete with plenty of high jumps, kicks and leaps. Seamlessly flowing through his late father's verses, his high energy helped him shine on stage amongst the arrangement of decorated stars twice his age.
Ghostface Killah and Cappadonna joined the clan and the group finished out their first set with Enter The Wu-Tang's intro track, "Bring Da Ruckus." Co-headliner Nas sauntered on stage, launching into hit after hit of his own decorated discography. His bars were slick and his flow unmatched as he rounded off singles from his 1994 debut Illmatic. In a highlight of the night, the minimalist bells of "Represent", sampled from Lee Irwin's "Thief of Baghdad," put a spotlight on Nas' air tight verses, a talent untouched and unweathered by the years that have passed since the song's release.
Returning to the stage for set two, Wu-Tang Clan served the audience with exactly what they wanted. Blazing through a nearly two-and-a-half-hour runtime, the crowd got more and more hyped with callbacks to "Wu-Tang Ain't Nuthing Ta F' Wit." Method Man, the remaining absent member of the crew, bounded up on stage in a Yeezy-esque entrance before launching into his own material.
The Long Island rapper brought the room's energy to new heights as he dedicated his titular track from 1993's Enter the Wu-Tang Clan to "all the weed smokers," reminiscent of the blunt that Raekwon had lit up earlier on stage in the clan's grand entrance. Method Man's energy and liquid flow shone on stage as all ten members of Wu-Tang Clan converged, trading sets and one-upping one another with increasingly dense bars. It was a true display of the enduring legacy of these rappers, complete with testaments to the figures who came before and after them who continue to change the game and elevate the culture.
Throughout it all, RZA took time outs to emphasize the relevance of Wu-Tang's victory lap in the 50th anniversary year of the birth of hip-hop. Engaging in history-laden stories that exemplified hip-hop's continued global relevance, RZA seemed slightly awed that the group who emerged from the streets of Staten Island and New York could find their audience in the northern city of Calgary, Canada.
"First of all, hip-hop is not just music, it's a way of life. It's a culture. It inspires the clothing, it's even inspiring fucking food now. It inspires the way that we living," he said as Wu-Tang members nodded along.
"It started in New York, then made its way south, then all the way to the west And now to fucking Canada! And we thank Canada for what hip-hop has brought."