Fu Bar, Auckland
March 23 | Reviewed by John Ochoa

DEAR NAS. Is hip-hop really dead? Well, that all depends on who you ask. To any other hip-hop mastermind, like you, who’s been in the game long enough to be able to distinguish raw talent from rhyme bitters, then yes, hip-hop may well be as dead as the dodo. That is, only if you’re scanning the superficial, commercial hip-hop market.

Hip-hop is definitely struggling and it’s hanging on to the thinnest thread of hope. What’s keeping it alive, though, are the local acts that write rhymes and spit flows with sheer passion and emotion.

That’s what Friday night was all about at Fu Bar, a night of international MCs and DJs trying to prove a point, trying to revitalize hip-hop, and trying to relay a message of hope that perhaps hip-hop may still have a chance at being worth listening to again.

Auckland’s highly diverse population made the city perhaps the ideal location for the theme of the show, an international showcase of global talents: the Taiwanese Dvrdict; 2 Pounds of New Zealand and Korea; New Zealand’s Shanti; and Auckland duo Definite and Bling.

Still, aside from the talented DJs spinning that night, the only ones successful enough to do so were the latter, whose sound mixes the influences of rap legends ‘De La Soul’ and ‘A Tribe Called Quest’ with a more contemporary feel comparable to ‘Cali Agents’ and ‘Royce Da 5’9”’.


MC Bling is quite the showman. When not rapping, he’s bouncing around the dance floor, body rocking, a little bit of pop locking, and a whole lot of crowd pumping.
When on the mic, he’s as quick as Eminem, connecting rhymes with such a harmonious, impressive flow that makes it difficult to figure out if he ever pauses to take a breath.

And with DJ Definite serving as his worthy sidekick/hype man, the two are near unstoppable and their music is virtually impossible to remain still to when blasting across an intimate setting like the Fu Bar.

Aside from the underrated Lauryn Hill and the overlooked Rah Digga, most people don’t expect much from female rappers, and Shanti proved why. Maybe it was because she hadn’t performed live for six months, but her soft-spoken vocals didn’t say much of anything. In fact, her reserved performance limited what could and should have been a much needed break from the rugged, in-your-face styles of the boys that night.

Rap duo 2 Pounds had some minor technical difficulties, but even after an attempt to rap over their DJ’s mistake, and even after fixing their little booboo, there wasn’t much essence to listen to. Aside from one of the MC’s comical portrayal of the typical Los Angeles, gangsta rapper image, 2 Pounds brought nothing to the table.

Lesson of the night: Hip-hop is not static and there still may be a chance of its survival and prosperity. It’s just damn well hidden under stereotypical images and gansta-life facades. So Mr. Nas, before making such a bold statement, it’d be worth the while to give independent hip-hop a chance. The future may be there.

» Images by Alex Flannery © 2007