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presario Drake sold out Radio City Music Hall, just a little over a month after Jay-Z rocked it during Nike World Basketball Festival. Earlier in this decade, Radio City, home to the performing Rockettes, would have been considered an unlikely venue for hip-hop concerts. Legendary black entertainers like Ella Fitzgerald, Bill Cosby, Sammy Davis Jr., Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder have graced the Great Stage, but for the hip-hop community, this is quite a feat. The recent use of the Hall for the Grammys, MTV Video Music Awards and the ESPY Awards now makes it an attractive venue for people under age 25.
Drake is obviously quite infatuated with Aaliyah. During his set, he paid tribute to Aaliyah, the talented ’90s R&B singing sensation whose life was tragically cut short by a plane crash at the tender age of 22. Her angelic face floated on a screen above the stage while her songs played in the background. On his debut album Thank Me Later, his single “Unforgettable” samples Aaliyah’s “At Your Best (You Are Love)” and on the nine-year anniversary of her death (Aug. 25), he penned a letter to her.
The concert featured a number of surprise guests. Drake was joined onstage with artists who collaborated on his album including Young Jeezy (“Unforgettable), Birdman (“Money to Blow”), Francis of Francis and the Lights (“Karaoke”), Mack Maine (“Every Girl”) and Tyga (“Bedrock”); Jay-Z’s new artist, J. Cole, performed his own single “Who Dat.” –yvette caslin
