Tony Yayo in Ottawa

Hidden Beats

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Tony Yayo in Ottawa last night was certainly a night to remember with Peter Jackson and Robbie G rounding out the crew. This was one of those nights where I wasn’t just going to snap a few shots and enjoy some music, I was there to help out and hang out with the guys backstage. The Brass Monkey has been almost like a home away from home so this was the place for me. The show was chock-full of locals ready to get the party going.

Openers

Our list of openers was vast for this one with both new and old faces. I’ve been around the scene here in Ottawa for about 10 years now and I’ve seen artists come and go and I can generally tell when someone is putting in the right amount of work. One fresh face for me was Bond out of Toronto. I got to chatting with him and he’s a decent guy. He puts on shows often for schools around his area in the community and puts in the work to become a solid artist.

The locals did their things for sure. I’ve known Raw B for a while but this was my first time seeing him perform it was nice to see him doing his thing. My good friend Spitten Image came out and put it down as he does best and with him, Bullyzone and Flaco from the Platinum Records crew put the stamp on things. Jeff Jones brought the energy and Express and his brother Rikachay brought the fire and set things up for the main event for sure.

Robbie G

First, up for tour support is Robbie G. I’m not a stranger to Robbie and his music he’s been on several shows I’ve been covering. One thing Robbie always brings to the stage is a high energy level. He gets the crowd going and starts a party off the right way. On top of his hard work on the stage he was running around like crazy making sure the show would go off without a hitch. It’s a hip-hop show so there are always a few hiccups but he did his thing and made sure it was the best it could be.

Peter Jackson

I’ve got to cover a few of Peter’s shows now but this was the first one I was working the show also and got to spend some time chatting with him a little more. Peter is a consummate professional and loves what he does with his music and is part of ITA helping to bring all these amazing shows to the cities. We spent some time chatting about the industry stuff in the back room and he even gave me some excellent advice for Hidden Beats. When Peter then hit the stage you saw a different side of him bringing confidence in his lyrics and swagger in his flow. One thing I will never understand is how he can wear that big-ass jacket, especially on stage! I couldn’t even move in something like that so Peter when you read this all the more power to you brother!

Tony Yayo

Now for the main event. If you are even remotely a hip-hop fan and don’t know who Tony Yayo is then you need to do a bit of research and listen. Best known and a member of G-Unit, Tony has a long list of credits to his name making him one of the OGs. When he hit the stage the fans were already excited so they just continued going wild. The stage at the Brass Monkey isn’t exactly huge but they made it work and had a great time with the closeness at of the crowd. Crazy night with some of the fan-favs tracks we all know and love what better way is there to spend a night?

After the show there was a VIP meet and greet in the back and I have to say one of the coolest things I will ever see is these big artists taking the time to chat with every one of the fans on a personal level. We were almost feeding people in too fast to see him we had to slow down. It was great getting to spend some time in the back chatting with Tony and talking shop a bit. The best part was the stories about traveling through the rocky mountains which I couldn’t help but have a laugh about. Tony Yayo is an absolute stand-up guy and I can’t wait until the next time he’s back in town for sure.

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