Legends of Hip Hop at Resorts World New York City (Recap, Photos)

Nostalgia and high energy hip hop filled the air as Resorts World New York City hosted Legends of Hip Hop, Vol. 1, an old-school flavored concert held in the Queens entertainment complex’s enormous event space. Performing at the event were several hip hop icons including Marley Marl, Naughty By Nature and Kurtis Blow.

In every artform’s history, there are legends: pioneers, gamechangers and timeless artisans, who have made their mark in their respective fields.

In hip hop, as in other music genres, the term “legend” can be subjective, but when Overdrive Productions assembled a concert lineup consisting of icons like famed DJ, producer and radio personality Marley Marl and the first rapper to ever have a gold record, Kurtis Blow, to play at the lavish Resorts World New York City, the word “legendary” was perfectly apt for the evening.

The Legends of Hip Hop, Vol. 1 event was held on March 15, 2014 in the Central Park event space, atop the multi-level casino that overlooks the prominent Aqueduct racetrack.

Before the show, while dozens of earlybirds waited excitedly on a long line snaking around the ornately decorated top floor of the casino, several of the night’s honorees made red carpet appearances, talking openly to press, bloggers and casino staff. Artists like DJ Kool, who we famously allowed to clear his throat. DJ Scribble, who helped bring turntablism to the mainstream. Dres, from Black Sheep, who implored us to choose this, or that. Vin Rock, from Naughty By Nature, whose “Hip Hop Hooray” is the worldwide standard for crowd-participatory anthemic rap.

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There were other hip hop and related royalty in the house. Dinco D from Leaders of the New School. Spoonie Gee. Doitall from Lords Of The Underground. Fonda Rae, who graced the stage with a spirited rendition of her disco classic, “Over Like A Fat Rat.” For many fans who were already a bit grown up during hip hop’s Golden Era, the event was a well-received musical homecoming, satisfying the melting-pot of musical tastes that have influenced generations of New York hip hop heads.

Resorts World New York City certainly did its part to match the “legendary” billing. The casino easily accommodated the several hundred in attendance in their cavernous top-level entertainment space. While the glitzy gambling haven has held major concerts before, this was their first foray into rap, yet the venue had no trouble catering to the needs (and sonic requirements) of a hip hop-heavy lineup.

Up front, the result was a full-blown concert experience.

Ladies yelling “Hey!” and fellas yelling “Ho!” 

Hands waving like they just didn’t care.

Toward the back and sides, a forest of tables and chairs, with plenty of aisle-dancing in between, created something of an indoor musical festival experience.

As if a giant party erupted in the middle of the Golden Globes.

Led by the host, comedian and Video Music Box personality Ray Dejon, the evening’s seasoned entertainers had no problem catering to a slightly older hip hop demographic.

The night saw artists reliving their hits, as well as the hits of others, with several shrewdly working nostalgia into their sets. This was perhaps best exemplified by Marley Marl’s tried and true DJ routine, playing snippit after snippit of recognizable hits from the past, to the delight of a happy-to-sing-along crowd. Along with a strong throwback set from similarly crowd-pleasing DJ Scribble, the music maestros set the tone early.

On stage, DJ Kool got things going with his trademark high energy, and as they have done countless times, the crowd let him clear his throat. Audience members sang along just like they have been doing in clubs, cars and living rooms for nearly 20 years, finishing “Hold up…” with “WAIT A MINUTE!” on cue and in raucous unison. Kool’s trademark raspy voice rung through the hall just as it did while being spun on its original vinyl, and the audience was engaged from the first moment.

Dres, one half of acclaimed ’90s group Black Sheep, followed with youthful exuberance and marked reverence for his own longevity in the business. He thanked the crowd with a lively rendition of “Flavor of the Month,” as well as more recent songs, including his material  as part of Evitan, his recently formed duo with A Tribe Called Quest’s Jarobi. Dres dropped a couple more Black Sheep classics, reaching the pinnacle when every red-blooded New York rap fan, as they have for decades, dropped to the floor when the train fell off the tracks and together, picked it up, picked it up, PICKED IT UP!

LISTEN: Our interview with Dres on Episode 084 of The NY Hip Hop Report

Of course, it was Kurtis Blow who perhaps best fit the title of “legend,” as his role as the first truly commercially successful rapper places him in a league only few share. The man who was the first to be signed to a major record company, who released several seminal rap classics, appeared draped in a light-colored jogging suit, baseball cap-to-the-back, delivering “The Breaks” and “Basketball” like it was the mid-80s again.

LISTEN: Our interview with Kurtis Blow on Episode 084 of The NY Hip Hop Report

The young beatboxer accompanying Kurtis Blow and sultry hip hop-inspired dance interludes between acts touched upon the other elements of hip hop that should never be omitted when celebrating hip hop music and culture, and helped fill in the time before the Naughty By Nature emerged.

And emerge they did. Group DJ and Grammy Award-winning producer Kay Gee amplified the crowd’s already-eager anticipation, running through a litany of classic R&B and soul joints, culminating with the Jackson 5’s “ABC,” as groupmates Vin Rock and Treach leapt immediately into the song that interpolated that classic to create their biggest hit, “O.P.P.”

Despite emptying part of their hit song ammunition so early, Naughty By Nature demonstrated their stageshow mastery, forged by a constant, worldwide touring lifestyle, as the trio kept the energy and excitement at full throttle throughout their headlining performance. Sprinkling similar nostalgic-inspiring soundscapes throughout their performance, paying touching homage to hip hop’s fallen heavyweights like Tupac and Biggie Smalls, The New Jersey representatives not only performed a thrilling set but truly connected with the New York-heavy audience.

On this night, in this room, for the Legends of Hip Hop, Vol. 1, everybody was hip hop family.

After the performances, the party continued, and by the time city residents began to trickle out into the brisk March night, the air was already buzzing with anticipation of volume two.

For more on the Legends of Hip Hop Vol. 1 concert at Resorts World New York City, listen to our archived recap on Episode 084 of The NY Hip Hop Report.

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