It took barely an hour for this show to sell out after the announcement was made online.  The house was packed by those eager to see Los Rakas and Mos Def perform.  For those lucky enough to score tickets to the show, Mos Def announced that this performance would be the last time that he would perform in the Bay by his infamous moniker, “Mos Def“.  Most gasped in disbelief but sighed a little relief when he stated that he will, after 2011, go by his Muslim name, “Yasiin” and provided the crowd with a sample of what to look forward to.  Read more on his announcement here.

Another successful event by the Hip-Hop.com and Ankh Marketing  crew who partnered with Another Planet to bring this show to fruition.  Always an honor to photograph for them.

Mos Def watching Nas perform his Illmatic set. I think his image says a lot about being a fan of hip hop..

What an amazing line up.  We were, once again, very honored to cover Rock The Bells SF at the Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View for Hip-Hop.com.  With artists such as Common, Black Star, Nas and Lauryn Hill on the bill we wanted to give a different perspective to those who weren’t able to attend.  We wanted those who view our images to feel as though they were right there.  You see, Rock The Bells is more than just performances, it’s about a culture.  With so many people converging into one location to celebrate all things hip-hop it would be crazy for anyone who considers themselves a fan of hip-hop to not have been present for this event.  Thanks again to Hip-Hop.com for giving us the opportunity to cover this event.

I went to the Skratch Pad the other night to record DJ Snayk Eyez’s set for the DMC finals. After seeing him perform in front of a live crowd, I can say he’s definitely ready to take it all. Snayk, you got this homie!!

I had the privilege of photographing Mobb Deep a while back at the Mezzanine San Francisco courtesy of Hip-Hop.com and Ankh Marketing.

Who better to headline my 1st live show of 2011 but Mr. Sir Lucious Left Foot himself, Big Boi of the mighty Outkast.  Once again Ankh Marketing and Hip-Hop.Com have out done themselves by throwing an event hip hop heads can sink their teeth into and they had it at one of my favorite venues in the city, The Independent.  George Watsky and Los Rakas opened up the night with crowd rocking performances.  George Watsky gave us ill lyricism with live intrumentation and Los Rakas hit us with the blending sounds of hip hop, reggae, and dancehall with a latin spin.  Take my word for it, both groups are worth checking out. . .so Google em’ now!  Haha!!  What can I say about Big Boi that you don’t already know?  All I can say is pure nonstop energy from beginning to end.  From cuts such as “Ms. Jackson” to “Shutter Bug”, Big Boi had the whole spot jumping with an array of classics. Celebrating his birthday, Big Boi showed the Bay nothing but love and even brought out one the Bay’s most beloved mcee’s on stage, Too Short. A big shout out to my homie, Nirav for hanging out and collaborating with me on this event. Make sure to swing by his site www.niravphotography.com.  He’s an exceptional and gifted photographer and not to mention a real cool cat.

Okay, I’m done.  Have fun peeping out some of the frames we shot…one.

Hip-Hop.com in collaboration with Yoshi’s San Francisco are bringing some dope artists to the bay these next few weeks.  To kick it off they brought out Slick Rick The Ruler to a packed house.  Parking was a bitch, Amari said.  These are a few of the images from the show that Amari took.  ENJOY!

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Amari had the opportunity to cover Rock The Bells SF this year (as I stayed home with the newborn and took one for the team.)  Looking over the frames below all I can say was, “Damn. What a golden moment in hip-hop history.”  And I don’t mean to toot our own horns but his frames are dope; capturing the festival in all its grandeur.  As an ode to the old skool sounds that the artists built their reps for, a lot of them sported tee shirts donning images of their own likeness from album covers past.  So if you missed Rock The Bells like I did, you can definitely live it  vicariously through the pictures below.  Enjoy!

KRS-One

9th Wonder

Murs

Ms. L-Boogie, Lauryn Hill

Phife Dawg & Q-Tip | A Tribe Called Quest

GZA | The Wu-Tang Clan

Ghostface Killah

RZA

Method Man

Boy Jones – Son of the late  ODB

The crowd is live! Lighters up!

Snoop Dogg

Kurupt

Tha Dogg Pound, D.P.G. – Daz Dillinger & Kurupt

Hip-Hop.com/Ankh Marketing in collaboration with Another Planet Entertainment brought no other than  Black Star to the Fox Theater in Oakland, CA.  Amari was the lucky one who got to photograph the show while I stayed home and tended to mama duties.  :-(  All good. . . Even though this duo consists of two of my favorite emcees:  Mos Def & Talib Kweli.  DJ Mr. E, yes, Mr. Papalote in the flesh opened up on the 1s followed by Zion I hyping up the crowd.  Here are a few frames from the event.  Enjoy!

Amp Live concentrating. . .

. . . while Zumbi takes the stage. . .

Thanks to Ankh Marketing and Hip-Hop.com we had the opportunity to capture some still documentary shots of the beautiful and uber talented Goapele at The New Parish in Oakland, CA before her show.  Good peoples and good vibes.  Together with Skyblaze Recordings and Giographix Studios, they have launched her brand new website: www.goapele.com.  Make sure to visit the site to view all the latest news and information about her upcoming album “Milk & Honey”.

So with no further ado, here are a few of our faves of the night.

I have to say that Goapele has the most perfect profile ever.  We couldn’t resist getting some of these shots of her.

Amari took the frame below.   I was really drawn to it and it has to be one of my favorites of the set.

I really loved the shot below too.  Amongst the chaos in the dressing room you see Goapele centering herself, trying to prepare for her performance.  Great mood shoot.

I love how Kamel’s Black Scale shirt frames Goapele‘s hair in the shot below.  Love it!

Here’s a few shots of the crew in a prayer circle right before walking downstairs.  Goapele thanking her band and channeling good vibes for the show.

And of course, a few live still shots of the actual show below.  It’s like capturing an old soul on film.  Classic.

Don’t forget to leave a comment!

For view more of our live event stills please visit our gallery at www.foot-candles.com/index2.php