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Video: Nas Joins Beastie Boys to Bomb Bonnaroo
By
John Del Signore
Published Jun 13, 2009
Modified Jun 13, 2009
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By
John Del Signore
Published Jun 13, 2009
Modified Jun 13, 2009
Share
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Some 75,000 people from around the world are currently swarming the 8th annual Bonnaroo festival in Tennessee, but from the way they all sang along with the Beastie Boys' classic "No Sleep 'Til Brooklyn," you'd think they were all just on vacation from the county of Kings. Last night the Beastie Boys brought their signature New York flavor to the 700-acre farm, throwing down with a well-balanced mix of crowd-pleasers, including "Paul Revere," "Pass the Mic," and "Shake Your Rump." The big surprise of the set—besides the comically butchered encore of "Sabotage," which completely fell apart both at the beginning and at the climax—was the appearance of Nas, "a special guest from Queensbridge," who isn't even on the Bonnaroo lineup.
The foursome proceeded to tear through a new song off the Beastie Boys' forthcoming album Hot Sauce Committee; security had cleared the photo pit by that point, but we grabbed some snapshots, which was humid pandemonium throughout the set. (We understand moshing to vintage hardcore chestnuts like "Heart Attack Man"—which began as an acoustic-country Mike remix—and "Egg Raid on Mojo," but it takes a special kind of meathead to start slamdancing to "Intergalactic.")
But of course, it takes all kinds at Bonnaroo, which this year boasts perhaps its most eclectic lineup yet. Can Jimmy Buffet, Snoop Dog, Phish, Nine Inch Nails, Margaret Cho, Merle Haggard, and Paul Oakenfold coexist in such close proximity without the universe collapsing in on itself? Tune in tomorrow for a full report; below, some video of the Nas cameo, via Mic to Mic.
The Beastie Boys with Special Guest Nas at Bonnaroo 2009 from Bonnaroo on Vimeo.
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John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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