“The velvet ropes they put up separate the people inside from those wanting to get in. On the title of her 1997 album The Velvet Rope, Janet Jackson talked about the nightclub experience and the symbolic significance of the velvet rope. I couldn’t help but think about how this experience, like many other industry happenings, felt like the velvet rope effect- a mystifyingly stymieing and empowering force felt when in the presence of people and spaces regarded as higher-status. \u201cChris Rock stating facts! \ud83d\udcaf\u201d - Def Jam Recordings Jam Recordings) Jadakiss stood behind me, beckoning someone towards the other end of the tent to slide him a sweatshirt, before emitting that beloved, shrill laugh, “Ahaa!” I watched as people shouted and clamored for their sizes- neon orange, forest green, and sand tan sweatshirts being tossed every which way. A throng of attendees rushed to the tent at the sight of free merch being distributed. Several military tank hummers were parked in the lot, surrounding a tent in the center. My friend and I were given white ones and were escorted in black sprinters. Many were given black wristbands and arrived to the venue on buses. Onlookers peered down at us from the penthouse, overlooking the lot as people began to file in. It’d been a while since I’d been back to that side of Queens, and it was clear that- much like many other sections of the city- gentrification was slowly, but surely encroaching. We landed in an open lot under the Queensboro Bridge, somewhere sandwiched between Queensbridge Housing projects and Penthouse Rooftop. I couldn’t help but laugh, but my friend grew amusingly and increasingly disgruntled, more concerned with the latent dismissal of one of the few remaining artifacts of staple NY culture within a changing physical and cultural landscape: Funk Flex being loud on the radio. Kind of annoying,” murmurs ricocheted from all ends of the car. “Why does he keep talking?” “He hasn’t let any song finish,” “Why is he cutting the records off. The radio switched to Hot97 as Funk Flex began his set. A few programmers had flown in from other parts of the country- California, South Carolina, Memphis. Sprinters picked us up in midtown Manhattan, en route to the secret location. READ : Stream Nas' New Album 'Nasir,' Executive Produced by Kanye WestĪt the premiere mention of a new Nas project, anyone could have guessed the main event would take place in the Queens MC’s old neighborhood. The 44-year-old artist is still a topic of conversation in this moment, for reasons that transcend music. Not to mention, his abrupt addition to the ever-growing list of male entertainers who have been accused of abuse by women. Nas has remained relevant since his last project, Life Is Good, with an onslaught of features, television and film franchises, commercial endorsements, and high-profile relationships. I’d be remiss to ignore or deny the moment’s significance. I hadn’t planned on attending, but the invitation was personally extended my way and being that it’d mark the rapper’s return with his 11th studio album following a six-year-hiatus, it would be a spectacle of all spectacles. That “thing” everyone was bridling with excitement over was the listening party for Nas ’s new Kanye West -produced album, Nasir. Then a separate text from another friend in the industry that read, almost verbatim, “Are you going to the Nas thing tonight?” “Are you invited to this Nas thing?” An iMessage popped up on my phone from an industry friend Thursday afternoon. Nas and Kanye hosted a star-studded album listening party in Queens while fans and critics reckon with a new climate in examining artistry, fame, and humanity. \u201cNas album listening under the Queensboro bridge\u201d - Ivie Ani Ani)
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