Watch The Throne

Watch The Throne @ MSG

By: Scott Randell

Last week, Jay-Z and Kanye West brought the highly-coveted Watch The Throne tour to the World's Most Famous Arena after two incredible shows just south of the border at New Jersey's IZOD Center the weekend prior.

The dynamic duo launched the longingly anticipated expedition two weeks ago in Atlanta before traveling up the eastern seaboard, making brief stops in North Carolina and Maryland amongst others, and finally touching down in the Metropolitan area. Hordes of people entered through the newly renovated stadium's gates, itching to see Jay and Kanye run through their catalog of hits and possible guest performances.
 

By now, practically all major media outlets have had the opportunity to report on a Watch The Throne concert. But what many have failed to recount is how Kanye West and Mr. Carter deviate from developing an act meant to be fully understood through a picture or tweet. Instead, they've created a production whose focal points revolve around the duo's raw, sometimes unexpected and uncomfortable emotions. One such instance involved touching moments throughout the performance of one of the more genuine tracks on the album, "New Day", in which both rappers talk about the reality of fatherhood in the limelight. Both men became quiet and visibly subdued as references to West's late mother and Hova's impending first child filled the thoughts of the Garden's hushed audience. Two similar actions arose at the intro to "All Of The Lights" and sporadically throughout "Runaway", where Kanye successfully executed savvy performance art, cynically poking fun at one of his greatest publicity blunders (Taylor Swift's acceptance speech at the VMA's) and a personal imperfection (his "asshole" side, as he called it). He cuts the intro to "All Of The Lights" three times in mock disapproval at the lighting director's (staged) inability to "turn on all the lights we paid for" and then encourages the audience to love each other and apologizes for being so rude in the extended "Runaway" rendition.

Everything about Jay-Z and Kanye West is different. Jay's calculated lyrical delivery and reserved dance moves make Ye's uncontrolled emotions and periodic forgetfulness that much more pronounced. Yet somehow, without a moments hesitation in most concert-goers minds, the two superstars put on a show that flowed ever-so seamlessly. "It was unreal to watch them together, feeding off each others chemistry," a fan stated. "To witness such a magical moment —I'm speechless."

Those lucky enough to be at "The Mecca" last week got to see once again why Jay-Z and Kanye West are two of the greatest to ever do it. To many, the show highlighted the social influence of "The Throne" and its willingness to impact culture. And in a venue with such a magnificent history, the pair didn't fail to continue the tradition. At this rate, it may soon be time to hoist their names, stitched to beautiful banners, up to join the elite in the arena rafters.