Kanye West in Concert - April 24, 2006

Seen and Heard - Kanye West in Concert - Monday, April 24, 2006:

• Opening Act featuring Duet of Violin and Viola
• No Video Projections or Special Effects
• Chamber String Interlude of "Eleanor Rigby" and "Bittersweet Symphony"
• Raps Presented as Works of Art
• Audience Singalong of Michael Jackson's "Rock With You" and A-Ha's "Take On Me"
• A Thunderous Christian Anthem
• All of the Hits

Kanye West brought his celebrated Touch the Sky world concert tour to an end in early April, so it was with excitement and surprise that I found out he would be performing a one-off fly-in show in my hometown of Normal, Illinois at Illinois State University. In keeping with West's collegiate theme of The College Dropout and Late Registration, the show was arranged through student government and aimed squarely at the student audience. As I suspected, this arrangement allowed for a great deal of freedom and engagement with the audience that resulted in an evening of magic witnessing a supremely talented artist experimenting and having fun.

In keeping with the surprises ahead in Kanye West's show, the concert was opened by Black Violin, a pair of classically trained string artists, violin and viola, with a hip hop MC. They have been embraced by artists ranging from Alicia Keys to Fort Minor's Mike Shinoda, and it was easy to see why. Tearing confidently through contemporary hip hop tracks from Missy Elliott's "Lose Control" to Dem Franchize Boyz' "Lean Wit It, Rock Wit It," Black Violin left an audience feverish and ready for the starring act.

Although it failed to connect on the pop charts, Kanye West's "Diamonds From Sierra Leone" is a towering opening number that few live acts can match. Dressed as a student complete with backpack, Kanye West took the stage in earnest. Utilizing only 2 backup singers, an 8 piece string section and a dj for support, the arena was quickly filled with both the intellectual engagement of West's rhymes and the expert use of samples and familiar excerpts of songs ranging widely across the history of popular music.

Kanye West took the audience into a whirlwind tour of his back catalog, with a bit of Eurythmics' "Sweet Dreams" for spice, then detoured into his rich history of material produced for other top hip hop artists. The first half of the show was a well-oiled extravaganza, but as the evening progressed, the lead artist loosened up and reveled in his return to a stage close to home (2 1/2 hours down the road).

As the show wore on Kanye West over and over demonstrated the brilliance that truly makes him stand out from other artists - an amazing command of the wide-ranging vocabulary of the last 40 years of popular music. Taking the audience through a "history lesson," he led the audience into a singalong of Michael Jackson's "Rock With You" and then the 80's pop classic A-Ha's "Take On Me," wittily accompanied by Kanye dancing in a style similar to the character of Carlton Banks from Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. He then detoured into favorite raps and new raps yet to be released - occasionally stumbling through words of seldom performed pieces but genially picking up where he left off.

Then, according to Kanye, the show officially began with a tear through the big hits "Gold Digger," "Through the Wire," and a powerful "Jesus Walks." A period of taking requests followed, and, with a comment "I'll quit playin' with y'all," "Touch the Sky" closed the evening 2 hours after Kanye West had begun. He left behind an audience thrilled by the magic and artistry of Kanye West's brand of hip hop.