19 By Alexander Fruchter On a somewhat wet, yet dry day in Mid-July, The 2008 Rock The Bells Festival officially launched in Tinley Park, a suburb of Chicago. The shifting weather was fairly fitting for Rock The Bells, a concert series almost notorious for its complications. The contradictory weather also fit Rock The Bells 2008 M.O., which was to showcase hip hop that was classic, yet also new. So while legendary acts such as A Tribe Called Quest, Nas, and The Pharcyde closed the show through electric headlining performances, it was their next of kin that set the stage for their performances. It was this order of acts that epitomizes Guerilla Union’s affinity for, and place within, hip hop culture. Rock The
Bells 2008 did not just serve as a day of music, but was a real life presentation of a hip hop timeline. The timeline went in reverse chronological order, as relative newcomers, Kidz In The Hall opened the festival. The duo of Naledge and Double- O further bridge the gap between new and old as their first record, School Was My Hustle, released in 2006 on Rawkus Records was deemed the second coming of Blackstar. The title quickly led to them being embraced heavy by the underground and backpack community. Their second album, The In Crowd, was released in 2008 on Duck Down and features a somewhat different sound that has them being paired with groups such as The Cool
Kids. Therefore, they perfectly fit between the two genres of hip hop that are sometimes needlessly at odds. Ironically, the new kids wearing retro gear do so out of respect to an older generation of artists that are sometimes quicker to diss them than embrace them. Rock The Bells gave both groups a chance to connect, and can serve to close a rift that was opened widely earlier this summer via the Internet and youtube diss tracks (see Mazzi Vs. Mic Terror). RTB came at a very good time, one in which younger artists are fighting for hip hop credibility, while others battle to stay relevant. By featuring acts like The Cool Kids, a group labeled too hipster to be hip hop, with A Tribe Called Quest, Rock The Bells serves to widen the umbrella
of hip hop culture. The festival simultaneously provides a chance for younger fans to see some of hip hop’s elderstateman and vice versa. Naledge’s Kidz In The Hall told me, “It’s just surreal to really build with these cats that really influenced you, and you can really get insight into the process that they used to make records, and their little secrets. We’ve been on a lot of different tours, but never have we been amongst this many legends all at one place, all at one time. We’re taking advantage of it to the fullest extent.” Other artists on the tour, but not at the Chicago stop, included Raekwon, Ghostface, Amanda Blank, Wale, Talib Kweli, and Flosstradamus, easily making this edition of Rock The Bells the most diverse yet. That’s not to say that RTB didn’t cast a large net since the beginning, as Sage Francis, Eyedea & Abilities, and Chali 2na rocked alongside the Wu-Tang Clan at RTB’s first run back in ’04. Authenticity is a very touchy subject within hip hop. It is something that is earned rather than given, and it is never assumed. If nothing else, an appearance at Rock The Bells serves as a stamp of authenticity, one that is endorsed and celebrated by all involved. Naledge continued, “This tour is something that we feel very much is a stepping stone for us. It’s solidifying ourselves amongst a group of people we’re getting compared to and look up to and that have been on another level for a long time. We feel that after this summer and after this year, we should be mentioned with those same people.” Kidz In The Hall’s performance was followed by fellow “next uppers” Jay Electronica, and B.O.B, further showcasing hip hop’s youth movement. Moving on, Murs, Dead Prez, Immortal Technique, and Method Man & Redman served as the middle passage for legends such as Rakim with Kid Capri and De La Soul who were followed up by Mos Def, Nas, The Pharcyde, and the headliner of headliners, A Tribe Called Quest. It was here that The Rock The Bells upped its diversity again, as the heavily socio-political music of Dead Prez and Immortal Technique blended seamlessly with the party and bullshit heavy earlier acts. The Black Power Movement has impacted hip hop in a tremendous way, and by including acts like Dead Prez and Mos Def (who was joined onstage by Fred Hampton Jr.), Guerilla Union gets a step closer to actualizing their goal to represent the full spectrum of Hip Hop culture.
Photo by Damien Thompson
Since its inception in 2003, Rock The Bells has been a true hip hop head’s dream come true. Artists such as Murs, Dilated Peoples, Wu-Tang Clan, Redman, Nas, Mos Def, Talib Kweli, B Real, and a host of others are regular participants in the annual concert series. Rock The Bells draws such heavyweights because it creates a hip hop summer camp, where artists show up with excitement to see who’s returned, and where their bunk is. A slot at Rock The Bells is not just another performance, or another check, it is a chance for artists to perform in front of a very dedicated audience as well as connect with other artists, some of whom are old friends, some of whom they’ve never met, and even some of whom they rocked with in year’s past. In fact, Rock The Bells has come to serve as the de facto reunion spot for hip hop’s elite. The 2004 concert, documented perfectly in the 2006 Rock The Bells film, served as a reunion performance for the entire Wu-Tang Clan. In 2007, Rock The Bells brought back Rage Against The Machine, and this year’s edition featured the return of the Pharcyde roster fully intact. Rock The Bells has become a staple of the summer. It stands alone and stands out during any summer season, no matter the year and no matter what else is going on. A Tribe Called Quest is a definitive hip hop group. Rock The Bells is the definitive hip hop festival. Alexander Fruchter is a writer from Chicago, IL where he is the editor of RubyHornet.com and a DJ under the name Roosevelt Treasurechest.
Rock the Bells 2008 / For more photos of M-1 of Dead Prez and his cohorts, go to: wideeyednation.com
{Nation Wide / All Summer}