Lyricism is alive and well. Why? Because Pusha T is still in the rap game. As relevant now as he’s ever been, King Push last night set fire to the Electric Brixton stage with a set that can only be described one way: hard bodied.
Following a questionable support act in Cadet, who took 15 minutes organising a mosh pit just so he could get in it and film it for some social media fame, Pusha got straight to the point. Running through the likes of ‘So Appalled’, ‘M.F.T.R.’ and ‘Keep Dealing’, fans were privy early on to what type of night it was going to be. Hardcore rhyming was on the menu - and that’s putting it lightly - so much so that the Clipse rapper, who was decked out in all black and rocking what appeared to be a bulletproof vest/waistcoat ensemble, might as well have been back on the corner in Virginia pushing weight with how hungry he sounded.
In London promoting his pre-album teaser, Darkest Before Dawn, the project’s haunting backdrops have never sounded as good as they did at Electric Brixton last night. Warming a crowd who had come in from a freezing cold London, the thumping beats of ‘Retribution’ and ‘Untouchable’, as well as my Name Is My Name bangers ‘Numbers On The Board’ and ‘Nosetalgia’, forced fans into a comfortable sweat after a unified wave of neck breaking head nods flooded the venue.
Dropping a bomb on fans midset by bringing out special guest Desiigner, the current holder of America's number one record brought a new type of energy to an already electrifying show. Rushing to the edge of the stage and quickly getting animated like a young Busta Rhymes, his mega hit ‘Panda’ had everyone in attendance flipping out and forgetting they were even at a Pusha T show. But Pusha’s not the type to trip. Standing at the side of the stage and letting the young buck have his chance to shine, Desiigner also performed ‘Zombie Walk’ and Kanye West’s ‘Freestyle 4’.
Performing between two illuminated crosses that read ‘Sin will find you out’, Pusha even found time to take it back to the record that broke him and his brother No Malice back in 2002, The Neptunes produced ‘Grindin’’. With buckets of sweat visibly dripping from his brow, he dipped into his stash of featured verses too. While ‘Move That Dope’ and ‘Mercy’ kept everyone’s energy levels up during the encore, it was Kanye’s ‘Runaway’ that well and truly tore the roof off of the place.
With faces from all different backgrounds and outfits from all different wardrobes - there was even a guy in a full blown suit who looked like he’d come straight from the office - who’d have thought that a drug dealer from V.A. would relate to so many different people? Raw and edgy with absolutely no gimmicks, King Push - or El Presidente as he now likes to be called following his new appointment as the President of G.O.O.D. Music - proved that tough talking rap music is as popular as it’s ever been, it just needs to be consistent and done with passion.
