Hip-Hop 50 Live at Yankee Stadium - featuring Run D.M.C., Nas, Lil Wayne, Lauryn Hill, Snoop Dogg and dozens more legends - was a star-studded, multi-generational celebration of rap history. Our recap:
at Yankee Stadium. One woman took the mic, intently closing her eyes while focusing on her next bar. As I walked away, she rhymed an improvisational derivative of recuperate, before spitting “that’s not even a word, I just be sayin’ shit.” The line set an apropos tone for the day. Hip-hop was bore out of rule-shirking and boundless imagination — and it made its way to “the house that Ruth built” to celebrate its 50th anniversary.
While Queens’ Rock The Bells had an overwhelming populace of 40+ fans the week before, it seemed like the Hip-Hop 50 Live crowd in the Bronx had a wider swathe of young adults, with fans of all ethnicities in the building. I noticed someone wearing a shirt with “Fuck dat commercial shit” on the back. Two women had matching “It’s like this and like that and uh” shirts. Some wore merch that they had already bought from the vendors outside the stadium .
Unfortunately, I had plenty of time to ogle fashion choices because of the show’s chaotic entry process. It took almost two hours to get into the venue, and it seemed like only a dozen or so frustrated, undermanned staff had to contend with thousands of people who were all confused about what line to stand in. The line for field-level seats was so stagnant it compelled one concertgoer to exhort, “Fuck 50 years of hip-hop, this line’s felt like 50 years.
After a while, tensions rose with impatient attendees and it felt like the wrong attempt to cut the line could go left — with no security in sight. Eventually, NYPD officers — and a random guy standing outside the stadium — ended up having to do the show organizer’s job and give the crowd directives.started his set, like all his sets, by twice telling his fans “I ain’t shit without you” — the people involved in putting Hip-Hop 50 Live together need to heed that.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – AUGUST 11: Lil’ Kim performs onstage during Hip Hop 50 Live at Yankee Stadium on August 11, 2023 in New York City. giving a spirited performance of her classic catalog, fully leaning into showmanship by giving the crowd her crouching “Hunting for you” dance. She brought out King Combs for “Can’t Stop Won’t Stop” after “Crush On You.” You get the sense that he wanted to dance more than rap — life is limitless as Diddy’s son.
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