Video: Rick Ross Live in Lagos

By Benjamin onaghinor

The Summer Jam concert held at Eko Hotel, Lagos. Enjoy...

Just as expected, US rapper Rick Ross performed at the St. EVE’s Summer Jam Fest held at the Eko Hotel on Friday, August 18, 2012.

The Maybach Music boss held the crowd spellbound for close to two hours, performing his monster hits – ‘Blowing money fast’, ‘Hustlin’, ‘Hold me back’, ‘I’m not a star’, amongst other songs. ’The boss’ got fans screaming their lungs out as he asked ‘Can I get a Rozaaay?’
Ross and his crew arrived in Lagos at 4PM had no time for a sound check – after landing at the Muritala Mohammed airport, the crew drove straight to urban radio station The BEAT 99.9FM for a quick interview, often making stops to film clips for a forthcoming documentary.
Ross arrived at Eko Hotel and Suites at 6:45PM and headed straight to his room. A scheduled press conference was later cancelled, while the concert, which was meant to start at 7PM kicked off three hours later.
Other performers included Flavour, Terry G, Iyanya, Vector, Dammy Krane, Flowsickk, Eva, Zaina, Sheyi Shey, and other acts. The South African duo Liquideep were also present to wow the crowd.
The artiste line up looked shaky for a concert headlined by an international star – where were the likes of Psquare (who recently had a successful collaboration with Ross), D’banj, Tiwa Savage and other top performers?
Terry G stood out from other performers because of two things: One – it was his first performance at the Expo Hall in the last two years. Two – he brought his bell and humongous ‘craze’ persona with him on stage. Others who also got the fans jumping were Iyanya and Dammy Krane.
The organizers made a grave mistake bringing Flavour, Vector and Eva after Rozay’s performance. The result? They performed to a quarter of the guests left in the hall, as others trooped out.
The concert was hosted by MC Larry D, whose best wasn’t enough, little wonder he handed the mic to seasoned OAP Olisa Adibua when it was time to introduce the headliner Rick Ross on stage.
Attendance was low, with regular ticket holders being the majority of attendees. They often slipped into the VIP section of the hall without notice. Sound quality was a tad embarrassing, affecting some brilliant performances.
However, the sound surprisingly changed when the MMG crew got on stage.
The concert could still be rated as a success (definitely not by financial assessment) but by the crowd’s response to Ross while on stage. ‘I feel like I’m part of you, me and you are from the same place, my people’, Ross said before he performed DJ Khaled’s ‘I’m on one.’
Celebs spotted at the concert include 2face and Annie Macaulay, Don Jazzy, Dr SID, D’Prince and Sound Sultan.