Hip-hop gigs in Australia rarely happen without a dose of controversy, so it shouldn't have come as a surprise whenXzibit's Adelaide show featured Mr X to the Z dissing the promoter on stage, a backstage confrontation between the two, leading toXzibit throwing a chair, and a whole lot of Internet chatter (FasterLouderdiscussit all here).
While it's easy to weigh in with an opinion (X did seem to go a little over the top) without actually having witnessed everything that went down, it's not really my place to talk. All I will say is that despite the backstage controversy, the show went fairly smoothly, with Xzibit working the crowd like the seasoned vet he is.
Wearing his own merchandise and looking like he's been on a cheeseburger diet of late, X still prowled the stage with vigor, shouting out his offsiders -- DJ Invisible and hype man Demrick -- while pumping up the typically rough local crowd, who were surprisingly well behaved, with the only the odd punter ejected here and there and not a fight to be seen.
"State Of Hip Hop vs. Xzibit," taken from 2013'sNapalm, opened the night, and was followed by hit single "Symphony In X Major," showcasing X's diverse discography. "Walk On," "Front 2 Back," and "X" brought back memories of my earlier twenties, while a sea of phones and cameras appeared during "Paparazzi," which you can no doubt view on Youtube.
A mid-set Nate Dogg tribute included "Been A Long Time," "My Name" and "Multiply," andX also dropped his verses from "Bitch Please" and Dr Dre's "What's The Difference" while also getting the crowd singing along to another Dre classic, "The Next Episode."
Overall, you can't really fault the guy's performance. While the hour set wasshorter than I'd like, X played all the hits and generally seemed to enjoy entertaining,doing his best to endear himself to the audience, probably knowing the headlines that would follow.
While his star might have faded since Pimp My Ride, Xzibitcontinues to be one of the West Coast's most enduring artists, and if he keeps up this level of energetic showmanship, then I'm sure we'll see him back in Australia sooner than later.
SIMILAR SONGS
