A standing-room-only, sold-out throng of hip-hop and jazz enthusiasts filled the seats of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Northwest D.C., on Friday for a show featuring celebrated artists Rakim, DJ Jazzy Jeff, and Ravi Coltrane, one of the three children of legendary musicians John and Alice Coltrane.
Accompanied by a quartet of live musicians, Ravi and his long tenor saxophone melodically complemented the funky beats by DJ Jazzy Jeff, who provided most of the sounds, while Rakim rocked on his solo microphone at the Kennedy Center’s “Hip Hop & Jazz Festival.”
According to the show’s producer, Jill Newman, of the New York City-based Jill Newman Productions, the jazz and hip-hop collaboration was the brainchild of Simone Eccleston, director of Hip Hop Culture and Contemporary Music at the Kennedy Center.
“We are so excited to launch our “Hip Hop & Jazz Festival,” celebrating the deeply interconnected and symbiotic relationship between hip-hop and jazz,” Eccleston said. “As two of America’s greatest art forms and vital genres within the Black Music Continuum, they have transformed global culture.”
DJ Jazzy Jeff, 59, Rakim, 56, and Ravi Coltrane, 58, provided a combined musicality that wowed and entertained the diverse audience.
While jazz and hip-hop were the predominant musical styles during the evening, ’70s funk music also made its presence. Mixing Eric B. and Rakim classics like “I Ain’t No Joke,” “Move the Crowd,” “I Know You Got Soul,” “Paid In Full” and “Know the Ledge,” DJ Jazzy Jeff perfectly highlighted the songs’ influences and samples from artists such as Kool & The Gang, James Brown, Bobby Byrd and Dennis Edwards.
DJ Jazzy Jeff is a legitimate handler of the wheels of steel, with at one point in the show, having a solo moment to truly showcase his skills. Rakim also got a chance to go solo, featuring his syncopated lyrical flow that has garnered him Hall of Fame status.
Coltrane offered audiences a glimpse of his legendary father’s mastery of the tenor and soprano saxophones, highlighting his improvisational skills.
