ViCE books chart-topping hip-hop sensation Lupe Fiasco

Acacia O'Connor Senior Editor

In the hip-hop world, Lupe Fiasco is hot. The Chicago-based MC, whose album debuted at number one on the Billboard Top Rap Albums Chart in October, will play at Vassar on Friday, Nov. 3. By what miracle did Vassar College Entertainment (ViCE) book such a giant star, you ask? Good timing, and a bit of luck.

“We started planning this show at the end of last semester,” said ViCE Publicity Executive Rudy Martinez ’09 in an e-mailed statement. “We decided that we had to take advantage of him before he blew up.”

A year ago, Fiasco was still up-and-coming. He performed guest vocals on Kanye West’s “Touch the Sky,” the fourth single off of West’s Grammy Award-winning album Late Registration.

Last spring, Fiasco released “Kick, Push,” the first single off his Atlantic Records debut album Lupe Fiasco’s Food and Liquor. A tribute to skateboard culture, “Kick, Push” became a summer smash hit, and so did Fiasco.

Fiasco has been praised for his inventive lyricism that is clever, playful, and genuine. Many of the songs on Lupe Fiasco’s Food and Liquor address heavy, pertinent socio-political issues.

The song “American Terrorist” reflects on religious extremism, while “Hurts Me Soul” addresses the negative gangster rap mentality Fiasco grew up with. On his Web site lupefiasco.com, he writes, “What you put out into the world comes back to you...I want to put some good in the world.”

Fiasco cites his multicultural upbringing and his father’s African drumming skills as important influences on his music. He has rapped since eighth grade and was a member of four-man rap group Da Pak, which signed with Epic Records but disbanded before the release of their first single.

On his Web site, Fiasco said the title of his current record, Lupe Fiasco’s Food and Liquor, “reflects on [his] being Muslim and being from the streets,” as most of Chicago’s corner stores are called “Food and Liquor.”

“The store is where everything is at...the ‘food’ is the good part and the ‘liquor’ is the bad part. I try to balance out both parts of me,” said Fiasco.

Fiasco has been promoted by big names in hip-hop from Jay-Z to fellow Chicago native and rapper Twista. He was nominated for four of BET’s 2006 Hip-Hop Awards: Hip-Hop Video of the Year, Hip-Hop CD of the Year, Rookie of the Year and Best Hip-Hop Lyricist.

“This concert would easily cost us double what we got him for if we tried to book him now,” said Martinez. “That is such a telling indicator of how huge he’s gotten.”

ViCE collaborated with Hip-Hop 101 to make the concert more than a single-MC venue.

Other artists featured in the Vassar concert will include Pharoahe Monch, Stimulus and MC Supernatural. Monch is another prominent and established name in the hip-hop world. His tracks have appeared on several soundtracks, including his 1999 hit track “Simon Says,” which was featured in the movie Charlie’s Angels.

Aside from performances, the show will also feature an MC battle highlighting the improvisational roots of hip-hop.

“We wanted to do it big, and it doesn’t get much bigger than this,” said Martinez.
Tickets to the show are $5 pre-sale with Vassar I.D. and $8 at the door. Tickets without Vassar I.D. are $15 pre-sale and $20 at the door. The concert will be held in the Students’ Building at 8 p.m. Doors will open at 7:30 p.m.

Additional Reporting by Mally Anderson, Arts Editor