Live Review: KRS-One

Blaze set the scene and the first eager punters were treated with two sets of solid head nodding hip hop classics. Newcomer Ellesquire came out hard with his track Ready, clearly relishing this once in a lifetime opportunity and making the most of it. One of Australia's pioneering hip hop acts, Sydney's own Def Wish Cast used the opportunity to give the die-hard fans some material from their upcoming record Evolution Machine, but also did their best to whip up the crowd with some classics of their own, with Knights Of The Underground Table creating a serious buzz.

From the opening bars of South Bronx, KRS-One had every single person in the packed out theatre in the palm of his hand. The energy level exploded – it's hard to put into words the kind of hysteria that erupted in the room. There was no fireworks, no remarkable light show, no hype men, just KRS-One and his son Predator Prime on the decks. No one could have asked for more. Watching one man cram a lifetime of underground hits – arguably the very blueprint of hip hop itself – into one show was without question one of the most exciting gigs a fan of real hip hop could possibly experience.

The man they call The Teacha recreated the entire history of hip hop in one set. Early tributes to Biggie and Tupac were given extra poignancy considering KRS-One's original BDP cohort Scott La Rock was himself shot down in a murder for which there have been no convictions. The chant of “You wanna get away with murder? Kill a rapper” was full of love for his lost friend and anger at a system that to this day continues to turn a blind eye. A massive crew of b-boys and a couple of b-girls flooded the stage to breakdance their way through a bunch of hits including Step Into A World (Rapture's Delight), somehow pushing the energy of the crowd even higher. When he pulled out the music and dropped a capella verses of beat down poetry, every member of the audience inhaled every word and held their breath. The only disappointment was when the last bars of Criminal Minded faded away and the show was over.

Australia may have had to wait 25 years for this moment, but seeing KRS-One, still at the top of his unbelievably tight game, was most certainly worth the wait.