How Was The Show - Maria Isa, Murs, Supreeme at 7th Street Entry

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Murs, Supreeme and Maria Isa at 7th Street Entry on 4/17/06

Murs - Publicity Photo

I walked into a completely full house to Maria Isa in full swing on stage. (I was, unfortunately, grossly misinformed and missed opening act Big Quarters. Keep your eyes peeled for their upcoming debut LP Cost of Living - they are always on point and I was saddened to have missed them.) The audience was enamored with Isa's powerful and self-assured stage presence; this St. Paul-based lady had absolutely no trouble engaging the audience with all the usual hip-hop, call and response antics. Her vocal style was sharp and percussive, with a bit of a Missy Elliot twang when she was rapping and full and expressive for the sung choruses. She definitely seemed most comfortable when she was performing in Spanish, which was when she really shined. A highlight of the set was when DJ Snuggles stepped out from behind the turntables and showed off some amazing beatbox skills. The stage interaction between Isa and DJ Snuggles was the best entrainment that night. Isa was also joined onstage by Back Up Plomo (Emetrece Productions), Mc Vivid (Illumunous 3) and the Afro-Puerto Rican folkloric group Raices (El Arco Iris Center for the Arts), and the dynamics of the set were ever changing.

Next up was Supreeme (www.supreeme.com), an Atlanta-based group fronted by petite emcees Negashi Arumada, King Self and Tom Cruz. The group has recently been signed to Record Collection) via Murs as their new hip-hop A&R rep), and Supreeme's album "Supremacy" hit stores on April 11. Murs joined Supreeme on stage at the end of their set and moved smoothly into his. The people in the sold out crowd stopped milling about and settled for whatever spots they ended up with.

Murs is an LA-based rapper who has been building a loyal following in Minneapolis; he comes through regularly and always gives his shows full throttle energy and enthusiasm. Minnesotans may be more familiar with his side project "Felt," where he shares the mic with our own Slug. Solo, he more than holds his own with a teasing, spirited and cheerful demeanor and solid well rehearsed raps. He opened the set with "Murs Day," the first track off of his latest (and greatest) album "Murray's Revenge." A lively and playful performer, he flashed his pearly whites at the crowd, who in turn seemed bound and determined to prove just how much Minneapolis loves him.

Moving into the "ladies portion" (his words) of the show, Murs played "Bad Man," a song about a dirty girl off of his 2004 release 3:16, and "Silly Girl." Pushing the envelope a bit, Murs asked the crowd to shout "Bitch" for the chorus instead of the usual "Please." A couple grimaces didn't discourage the crowd nor Murs. He said, "Ladies don't take it personally, guys just love pussy. We love it so much that we want to share it with our friends." He finished the "ladies portion" of the night with D.S.W.G from the new album.

The crowd seemed to know the new material well and there were many hands in the air. The set took a hilarious and unexpected turn when Murs did some serious lip singing to Coldplay. Finishing the set with old favorites "God's Work" and "H.U.S.T.L.E." he closed with "Yesterday & Today" from the new album. The crowd was not ready for the show to be done, however, and yelled and chanted for Murs to come back out. Three minutes or so later he did, apologizing that he truly was out of songs. Negashi Armada and Tom Cruz were invited back on stage to engage in a bit of freestyling and beatboxing, respectively.

Location Info: 7th Street Entry
Artist Info: Maria Isa, Murs, Supreeme

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