I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty charged up
for the weekend of July 16 and 17 to roll around. If you haven’t heard about
it, you should’ve. I think it’s going to be pretty big. Huge, even. No, I don’t
work for the promotions committee of Rochester MusicFest. No, Mayor Bill didn’t
slide me any dead presidents to say this.
In the 11-year history of the Rochester MusicFest, I
don’t think it has ever had such a stellar, superstar lineup. For an r&b
and hip-hop cat like me, the lineup is sick.
We’re talking Brian McKnight, Boyz II Men, and Faith
Evans: Already that’s over 25 million records sold in the US alone, with
countless hits. Not to mention 112 and Jagged Edge, each of them with a core
audience to scoop their records up every time they drop. We also have the
newcomers on the scene: Raheem DeVaughn, Lyfe Jennings, and John Legend,
larger-than-life right now with the help of his Kanye West-produced debut.
Speaking of Kanye West, we’ve gotta talk about the sole hip-hop act on the
bill, Common, who just put out his blazin’ hot LP on West’s record label.
As great as this sounds (at least to me), there are
a few acts I could have done without. BET’s making-the-band group Fatty Koo
will be there, as will non-singing-but-fun-song-making Ciara, and the “move
your body” girls Nina Sky. I guess they’re harmless, but they’re not who I’m
checking for. I’m hungry for the meat and potatoes of the event, and I’ll sit
through the low-fat appetizers to see ’em.
— jaythreeoh
Find out more info about the 2005 Rochester MusicFest by clicking here!
This article appears in Jul 13-19, 2005.
