Red Bull Sound Select threw another one of their always great three dollar showcases with Oddisee, Oshun and Tunji Ige . Curated by the indie music stalwart Brooklynvegan, and thrown at the great Brooklyn venue Baby’s All Right it was a fun and surprisingly hot night despite the arctic weather outside. The line moved quickly and for those stuck outside for more then a few minutes got a free can to sip on to help fend those jitters; a good touch.
Tunji Ige hit the stage first and was a solid. He knew how to engage the crowd and some interesting call and responses (had the crowd screaming Naira back at him), and was just a solid live MC. He already has a hit with his heavy trap influenced, “On My Grind”, but his live show proves he’s a much more versatile rapper then many of his peers and despite his early slot had many in the crowd grooving to many new songs.
Oshun hit the stage next. On the surface they borrow ideas and styles popular among the black bohemian set; there were plenty of kente cloth and references towards the Yoruba religion on stage. But, like true artists, they take their influences and make it their own. They had great state presence (and a superb live band) backing them while they effortlessly traded vocal duties while switching between rhyming and singing. Their enthusiasm for the crowd was infectious and you could tell the positive energy they were giving out was important to them (and the crowd returned it in kind).
Eventually Oddisee came out and as expected put on a masterful performance. During the show he pointed out he was relatively fresh from a world tour and it showed; his vocals were razor sharp as far as syncopation was concerned and he had the crowd eating at the palm of his hand. While Oddisee is known to perform with a live band at times, it was just him and a DJ and it felt as full of a show as anything we’ve seen these last few months. While live hip-hop can get some flack sometimes due to lazy performances Oddisee was the ultimate professional and the packed crowd appreciated every word.