The Queen of Hip Hop Soul, The Greatest Rapper Alive; those are lofty titles to maintain, but co-headliners Mary J. Blige and Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter demonstrated their legitimacy with soulful, street-savvy performances and presentation at the Superpages.com Center in Dallas on Saturday night.
It was a deafening roar of cheers and applause from the nearly sold-out venue that greeted the two as they rose from beneath center stage and descended separate winding staircases during their first duet, "Can't Knock the Hustle." In a glittering jacket, oversized shades and rocking a blond wedge cut, Ms. Blige was the picture of urban glamour, while Mr. Carter was her blinged-out, denim and kicks-wearing counterpart.
KYE R. LEE / DMN
Mary J. Blige and Jay-Z perform together at Superpages.com Center (formerly Smirnoff) in Fair Park on Saturday.
In front of a pulsating city landscape, Ms. Blige began her hourlong set with a medley of early gems: "Mary Jane (All Night Long)," "I'm the Only Woman" and "You Bring Me Joy" were served up with the swerve and sass that only a seasoned performer could attain. The full-fledged band, trio of background singers and string section added resonance, but it didn't hamper the hip-hop edges created by splicing tracks together, such as layering Craig Mack's "Flava in Ya Ear" onto her sunlit opus, "Be Happy."
In spite of her rosier personal and professional life, Ms. Blige didn't just emote; she continued exorcising past demons with the pain-filled cuts. She added her trademark super-dark sunglasses and equally dark lipstick before singing "Not Gon' Cry" and had a trio of live actors re-enact the lyrics of what could actually now be Maury Povich's talk show these days, "Your Child": "What makes a brother so mean and cruel, I wanna know?" she wailed of men who flee their parental responsibilities. "I was that child; my mother did the best she could, but the streets had me my whole life, I've been there." The mood brightened considerably with the strut-your-stuff mantra, "Work That," "MJBda VIP" and "Just Fine," where she got her old-school boogie on with a flourish.
Jay-Z's set had a cooler, more collected tone, but he was just as celebrated and charismatic as his R&B counterpart: his trademark hand insignia greeted him thousands of times over as he proclaimed "Roc Boys in the building tonight!" and served up American Gangster favorites like "Roc Boys (And the Winner Is)," "I Know" and "Pray," which solemnly segued into a blistering anti-President Bush freestyle about the poor handling of New Orleans after the Hurricane Katrina disaster. "Are ya'll ready for change?" he said, drawing cheers as Barack Obama's picture flashed on-screen. "And no, I'm not sponsored or endorsed by Barack, I'm just a free American citizen stating my opinion."
Jay-Z stalked the stage like royalty for the rest of his set, flawlessly dropping verses from "Can I Live," "Dirt Off Your Shoulder," "Izzo (H.O.V.A.)," "Song Cry" (with Ms. Blige), "Money Ain't a Thang" and "Hard Knock Life." He also mined through a dozen other hits with his DJ ("Sorry, B," he chuckled as he dismissed their smash, "Crazy in Love," for his U.G.K. duet, "Big Pimpin',") before closing with – what else? – "Encore." In a mini-film preceding the show, Jay-Z called Ms. Blige "courageous" for sharing her truths with the world and overcoming her hardships, and Ms. Blige called Mr. Carter "the smart hustler that you always looked up to ... Jay-Z is just the truth." And at the end of it all, no one witnessing The Heart of the City Tour was left any reason to disagree.
Lorrie Irby Jackson is a Dallas freelance writer.
