Denver’s annual showcase of green themed concerts commenced yet again, and with some veteran faces. Method Man and Redman have performed the past four years, and this year they were sandwiched in between 8Ball and MJG and Cypress Hill.
The dual shows at Cervantes began on Sunday, with the festivities kicking off just after nine with 8Ball and MJG. The duo that blazed through the nineties along the likes of Three Six Mafia highlighted the stage with the same Southern hip-hop feel that they have shone all of these years. The rappers moved back and forth interchanging the spotlight from on another, exposing their skill turn after turn.
After the nostalgic performance from the openers, Meth and Red, Doc Funk and Johnny Blaze, Red & Mef, or however else you may know the iconic collaborative that is Method Man and Redman took on the disco lit ballroom of Cervantes Masterpiece.
M-E-T-H-O-D Man and Redman jumped on stage a quarter after ten with the energy and vigor that could have been expected of them years ago. The two legendary 90’s emcees treated an excited crowd to age old hits like, “Method Man,” going into “Pick it Up,” and coming back to finish out “Method Man.,” while teasing in a brief “Lodi Dodi.”
Among the songs to bring anyone back to memories of a cassette tape collection, Redman screams over the mic, “Hell yeah to the 90s. Anyone really remember the 90s?” To which the crowd responded with an enthusiastic confirmation. The crowd participation did not stop there, as he then asked the men of the night to let the dogs out if ‘you love hip hop,” which retrieved loud “Ooh! Ooh! Ooh’s!”
No one could deny the power of the W’s being thrown into the air in such a volume, some show goers of certain heights may not have been able to see much else. They could hear, however, the saga of Method Man introducing the DJ booth, including the man behind the design of the W, Allah Mathematics, which has inspired millions of tattoos, t-shirts and other Wutang memorabilia that can be seen, everyday.
Red and Meth performed on with “How High,” a nice cover of “Shimmy Shimmy Ya,” and “”Part II.” Aside from the surplus of 90s favorites, the two jeered the crowd to start mosh pits, asked if they would see a How High the sequel and then announced the intention of releasing a Blackout 3, as well as a celebratory speech dedicated to their independence from Def Jam Records after twenty years.
Before the two left the stage, they saluted the Broncos, named Denver the #1 of hip-hop tour stops, and lead a long ode to Biggie, Tupac, Aaliyah, Big L, Big Pun and, of course, Ol’ Dirty Bastard, before crowd surfing off of the stage for the night.
With only one act left of the night, Cypress Hill joined the fun, opening with “I Wanna Get High” and “ Dr. Green Thumb.” There seemed to be no confusion with following along with the lyrics at this show, the crowd was practically drowning out the main event.
Cypress Hill catered intently to the premise of the evening, continuing on with tracks like, “Hits from the Bong.” However, not all of the tracks they played were of the herbal motif, as contributed through the night other long time favorites like, “Hand on the Pump,” “When Shit Goes Down,” and possibly the most popular of the night, “How I Could Just Kill a Man.”
After B-Real threw on a bucket hat, ”Latin Lingo” popped off and the show proved to stay live all night. The group kept the crowd engaged by having sectional screaming battles, declaring Denver the greatest place for stoners, and by having the live band feel that kept the bodies moving deep into the early morning hours.
Sunday’s show was only the beginning, as Method Man, Redman, Cypress Hill and many more played the afternoon 420 in the Streets on 4/20, surely leaving fans feeling more supported on this day of the year than ever. Until next year.