From the beginning, when the entire street was blocked off so that only the most exclusive — through money or connections — could even get close to the iconic marquee on 11th Street between 3rd and 4th Avenues, it was an old-school fellowship of hipsters and hip-hoppers coming together for musical worship.
The occasion was Jay-Z’s first performance at Webster Hall at the renovated club and concert space’s reopening on Friday night after being closed since August 2017. It’s been a while since a New York nightspot felt so much like the place to see and be seen. And it felt good.
As Brooklyn’s own Jay-Z kept the sold-out crowd waiting for a couple of hours, concertgoers got to check out the new and improved Webster Hall, from the expanded lounge area on the entryway floor to the sleek new stairwells that make for easier flow and sexy selfie opportunities.
When Jay-Z finally took the stage after 10 p.m. to inaugurate the new era of Webster Hall, the tuxedo-and-bow-tied rapper was taking his place alongside legends such as Frank Sinatra, Prince and Madonna who have made Webster Hall a music mecca in New York City.
Performing his “B-Sides 2” concert of material he rarely performs live – he did the first “B-Sides” at Terminal 5 in 2015 Jay treated the event like the moment it was. It was his own homecoming after wife Beyoncé had hers on Netflix last week.
Backed by a live band and guests such as former rival Nas Jay showed that he is every bit the musician as many of the other legends who have graced that stage. And by not doing any of his biggest hits, such as “Empire State of Mind” and “Big Pimpin’,” he tapped into an old New York vibe of people who were in the know and could rap along to the deepest of cuts.
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