Saturday June 23, 2012 was a hot day in Philadelphia, not just because of the weather but because of the city’s biggest block party. Illy Jilly from Philly reconnected with her hometown and her fans at The Mann Music Center for a 4 hour musical extravaganza. The big party began with Jeff Bradshaw who served us a trombone filled appetizer with a side of Jazz and Soul from his latest CD Bone Appetite. Jeff’s littlest “mini me” joined him on stage a he warmed up the crowd.
Next up was the musical grill master DJ Jazzy Jeff who put everyone in a “I’m sitting in the park with a cold beverage in my hand and I haven’t a care in the world” mindset. Jazzy Jeff kept the music mellow and smooth at first, I mean we had several hours of partying to endure so he wanted to make sure we paced ourselves. Besides, this was a great distraction from the set changes (and how long they can sometimes take). Jazzy Jeff’s set flowed nicely into Eric Roberson’s performance. “Mr. Nice Guy” was dapper “tan” in his 3 piece suite; he encouraged the audience to ignore the house rule of not photos because he “just looked too good.” Roberson further wowed the crowd with a song he made up on the spot after soliciting random word from the audience. I was impressed with how he managed to turn “hot dog,” “sex,” “cranberry & vodka,” “believe,” & “toe jam” into an awesome song! That boy good!
Jazzy Jeff returned to the stage to give us a mini Michael Jackson tribute and officially got the “party” started. People, including myself, jumped to their feet and started dancing. I thought a Soul Train line was going to jump off but before it could angelic creatures dressed in white floated on stage and prepared for set # 3. Kem brought his amazing Kemestry to the stage with a mixture of Jazz, Soul and ministry. Several times in the performance he delivered an inspirational message…just about everyone was feeling the spirit by the end of his set.
Jazzy Jeff made his final appearance and turned the heat up so high he made me sweat out my afro from dancing so hard. The entire Mann Music Center was on its feet doing the whop, running man, Roger Rabbit or a jazzed up two step to the hottest hip hop jams of all time. Once the audience was all hot and sweaty it was time for Illy Jilly to start her set.
Jill, wearing an orange with small brown checkers matching dress and leggings set and a “low boy” hair style; meaning she had a tiny afro, began with her go-go inspired song Give it To Me. Ms. Scott entered the stage with high energy and in full voice; the audience loved every minute of it, especially me. I mean that’s my fellow North Phillyan up there representing for all of us. Jill gave herself on the stage; she gave us poetry, she gave us rock n roll (while sporting a Joan Jett-esk bob to boot), she gave us her South African accent describing the definition of a good “screw” and she gave us a funny sketch on “air freshener” for a specific male body part. Jill was raw, real and relatable…and she REALLY knows how to throw a great block party.
Concert reviewed by Tiffany Bacon, radio personality for Radio One Philadelphia
