Last night’s one-two punch of Jay-Z and Eminem performing live for the launch of Activision’s DJ Hero game was definitely the kind of dog and pony show you dream about. Where else will you almost get elbowed by Rhianna wiling out to “H to the Izzo” while Leonardo looks out from the coveted balcony seats? Of course, at any other concert, the balcony is considered the cheap seats. But that balances out nicely if you’re the guy who casually walked up to the front of the stage and held out your hand for Jigga to slap. Try getting that close at a regular Jay-Z concert.
The line-up started with TRV$DJAM, but the night really began with the food spread throughout the lobby. I’m usually shy of chowing down at public buffets—but with so many gamers (this was an E3 event) mauling on chinese chicken salad, tater tots and jalanpeno poppers, it was impossible not to load up a plate. TRV$DJAM started up right at 10 with their NOW-That’s-What-I-Call-Hipster set of late-decade party faves. They get retro with some fresh mixes of The Zombies and The Mamas and the Papas, but with two Soulwax remixes (MGMT/The Gossip), Daft Punk and Bloc Party’s nearly forgotten “Banquets” all on deck, this bizarre on paper fusion celebrity-DJ and celebrity-drummer (two occupations not usually celeb-centric) these two one-of-a-kinds are birds-of-a-feather. And the light show was “off the chain” sayeth the bartender as he dished out more free cocktails.
The next hour was filled with the sort of corporate flourishes that can make these events cringe-worthy. NBC’s Chuck was recruited (paid-in-full) to act as host, introducing Guitar Hero 5 as performed by some of the developers. Either they were faking up there or these guys are really good at GH. Probably the latter, as I doubt you’d fake it in front of the world’s gaming press. Next was a demo of DJ Hero which looked impressive on the stage-wide LCD screen. We still couldn’t’ get a great look at the controller manipulation, but it appears that the turntable doesn’t actually turn, but rather houses three buttons to be pushed in time, a la the colored Guitar Hero buttons, while a crossfader serves a purpose as well.
But the real event happened around midnight when Jay-Z hit the stage. The volume was thunderous as Jay played a selection of greatest hits. The consummate showman, it was easy to remember why Hova is everyone’s favorite MC. He’s got skills for days, but doesn’t let that get in the way of his smile, which is exactly what the now lubricated Activision staffers wanted flashed their way. You pay a lot of money to have the CEO Rapper smile at you.
After about a 30 minute set, Jay was joined onstage by Marshall Mathers himself. The two traded verses on “Renegade,” with Jay attempting to pass Em his obviously better mic. Perhaps the real difference is in the pair’s vocal power. Eminem has never been known for his locomotive vocal volume, and hearing him side-by-side with Jay, it was clear who would be the winner in this arena. Not that there was any real competition. Jay left Em to fill out his own time slot with a package of new songs and a finale of “Lose Yourself,” the one song that got the crowd as amped as they had been the rest of the evening. The lesson being, if you’re playing a corporate event—even one as cool as this—don’t use it to only showcase your new product. Especially when following two equally famous acts who built their set around music that everyone knows and loves.
As we waited at the free valet afterward, we caught Adrian Grenier getting into a clean-diesel powered Q7 TDI that is being loaned out by Audi in order to build some buzz for it’s upcoming release. The paparazzi dutifully took their shots—a perfect synergy of marketing savvy and celebrity power that makes dropping half a million dollars on a one night concert a reasonable way to advertise your product. Jeremy Piven got into his car right afterwards, making certain you’d realized this was a night right out of an episode of Entourage. If video games are about fantasy, this was a Hollywood dream come to life,
Related Reads:
DJ Hero Gameplay Video + Eminem and Jay-Z Premier Party
DJ Shadows BIG DJ Hero Announcement
DJ Shadow “DJ Hero” Interview and Avatar(?) Revealed
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