Common, Black Milk, ManeLine @ the Fox

By lucia de giovanni | February 20th, 2009 | No Comments »

Despite a late start, Common quickly won over the crowd at the Fox Theatre on Thursday. Photos by Lucia De Giovanni.

Common is an entertainer — he knows it and the crowd expects it. And last night at Boulder’s Fox Theatre, he delivered. The evening started out with Colorado’s own ManeLine — pure hip-hop fun, and polished in a non-choreographed way. One can tell the members truly enjoy performing together.

They warmed up the stage for Black Milk (Detroit’s own MC Cross) with another energetic performance that left me wanting more. That’s a good thing, right? Around midnight, the crowd started chanting for Common during the DJ’s set and I started getting tired. This Thursday night I wasn’t alone, as I was surrounded by yawning faces. Then the lights finally dimmed and the stage cleared for the headliner.

Common shot out the stage’s side entrance with such energy and verve it felt like the whole theater woke up at once. Amid his usual hits he offered a freestyle set that had the crowd roaring with mentions of CU’s Buffs, Obama, Boulder and, of course, Billups. Always the entertainer, he invited people to join him on stage for a breakdancing show down, where he also did his best popping imitation. And as if that wasn’t enough to connect with the crowd, a nice body surfing among fans did the trick.

Common obviously loves people, and people love Common. For a good reason.

Lucia De Giovanni is an award-winning photographer and internationally known photojournalist. You can view more of her work on her website and follow her Project 365, a Photo a Day, on her blog.

MORE PHOTOS: ManeLine