The fact that concert promoters were forced to cut ticket prices to two thirds of what they were originally charging, was the tell tale sign that either Ice Cube is not the same draw he once was or they had no business asking for $34 during a recession. Out of complete respect and due to the fact that Cube dropped one hell of an album this year, we’ll assume the latter is the reason for the subpar turnout. Granted, the move from Center Stage was absolutely necessary and The Loft was a good fit for a spirited crowd that was made to sit through opening act performances that were not so California. Kid Kaos got the party started with a backpacker friendly set and Haziq Ali was later met with less than jovial responses. Tolerable, but not so polite that they wouldn’t jeer, shades of “Showtime at the Apollo” emerged as verbal sirens were set off, followed by signature hand gestures that meant “get the fuck off the stage” in no uncertain terms.  

In between sets the music was less than appealing to the West Coast enthusiast. While Notorious B.I.G. and Kangol from UTFO are either classic or nostalgic for different reasons, this just wasn’t the night you wanted to hear them. “Five On It,” “Dopeman” and other classic West Coast material was accepted with better fervor, but not often enough.

Detroit native Trick Trick put a definitive cease to the cantankerous mood of the crowd as he heated the joint up with a commanding performance. Forgive us though if we couldn’t rap along with him. Be that as it may, he almost certainly gained a new handful of fans by not giving a fuck if they’d ever heard of him or his current project, The Villain.  

As Ice Cube emerged onto the small stage, the crowd expectedly packed it in. With little to no room to move, patrons from the front end all the way to the back waved their respective W’s and joined the Don Mega, reciting classic lyrics verbatim. Known as an extremely active performer, Cube was limited as to how much ground he could cover, but made up for it with animated body language and clear, concise delivery on select efforts from America’s Most…, Predator, War & Peace, Death Certificat, Laugh Now, Cry Later and Raw Footage. An unexpected duet with Young Jeezy was met with a healthy ovation as the two rappers did “I Got My Locs On,” but the CTE boss turned in an apathetic performance. Meanwhile, Cube was his normal dynamic self. Kind of made you wish Killer Mike was there instead.

All things considered, including the rain, it was a good day/night. Never a dull moment when Cube hits the stage…

HELLO!