all words: Josh Phelps

all killer photos: Josh Sisk (full set here)

Chef Raekwon entered the 9:30 Club on Tuesday night riding high on the strength of near unanimous praise for Only Built 4 Cuban Linx 2, a flawless return to the “witty unpredictable live shit” we’ve been waiting on for 14 years. With Time Magazine and even CNN spilling drool on Chef’s apron, I half expect to see him carrying a Nickelodeon surfboard under one arm and a golden gramophone in the other next year.

Maybe sharing a stovetop with Martha Stewart, baking real cakes instead of rocks and enjoying his injection back into pop culture that easily eclipses his mark made in the mid 90s. But, classic records or not, the 6 to 700 people at the show were more interested in the proof in Chef’s pudding when it came to the live show he championed in the BYT interview earlier this week. As a general rule, I’ve avoided the live shows of some of my favorite hip hop artists over the years unless they were The Roots, were backed by The Roots, or traveled with some sort of backing band like Outkast or Ghostface are wont to do. It’s not that I’m against 2 turntables and a mic, I’m just not that into 2 turntables and 5 to 10 mics. What’s that you say? Ah, yes, too many Chefs in the kitchen, especially when the number of live mics is usually inversely proportional to the number of instruments on stage. Having said that, I was ready to give a veteran like Raekwon the benefit of the doubt as he took the stage around 10:30, DJ and several hype-men in tow.

Donning an oversized Godfather-themed black hoodie, he launched into a crowd pleasing revival of classic Wu, reawakening the masses with classic bangers that covered all 16 years of their grip on the rap game. It was easier to forgive the distraction of the hype-men accentuating every last word of every line on “Ice Cream” when you were looking at the person next to you, spitting every line and acknowledging your shared understanding of chocolate-deluxes and running up in guts. This is how the whole night played out, a celebration of past, present, and “OH SHIT!” moments where the crowd of converted: were all hype-men now, including DC’s own Chef, Spike Mendelsohn, side-stage. The setlist was heavy on Cuban Linx 1 and 2 but the more palpable crowd reactions were felt when the Chef served up classic verses a-la-carte, from Mobb Deep’s shared-beef anthem “Eye for an Eye” off of The Infamous to 1993’s “Protect Ya Neck” from the Wu debut.

There were a few hiccups throughout the show including Capone’s interlude sans partner in crime and original superthug Noreaga, who didn’t make the trip down from NY. Capone’s laid back flow was more than serviceable but without the interplay of his wild-ass teammate, it felt a little flat. What to do? You throw on Ol’ Dirty Bastard’s Shimmy Shimmy Yah, obviously, and just like that the crowd was ready to receive Raekwon’s lyrical lasers through the cloudy haze rolling off the stage. The second half of the set was highlighted with some of Rae’s most vivid declarations on street life in“Criminology” off of OB4CL1 and OB4Cl2’s “Canal Street,” inextricably linked by menacing, cinematic horns and a reminder that besides rap he’s famous for his “kitchen knives, rings and the fifths of stainless.”

The set closer appropriately paid homage to the group that lifted Rae to stardom as the monstrous bass and strings of Wu Tang’s “Triumph” shook the stage. This victory lap was the embodiment of what this entire tour must be like for Rae, a validation of the blood, sweat, and years he’s poured into nearly two decades both above and underground. While the live show wasn’t a game changer by any stretch, it was an inclusive celebration and rap history lesson where we weren’t just celebrating a hip hop icon, but with one.

(obligatory byt sticker fanboy photo moment)