Lecrae energizes the Tower Theater In Philadelphia
I've gotten a chance to review a lot of different shows from different genres. I mean, rap music is going through a slight identity crisis. With the noise of so many voices and conscious rap making a comeback through the albums of Common and Run The Jewels to an extent, I had to look into the Lecrae concert at the Tower Theater. This year, Lecrae has had his seventh album, Anomaly hit number one both on the main and gospel charts. It's a solid album with a great message. When I went into the Tower Theater, the atmosphere was different. The place was abundant with a lot of young people - not only from a Christian background, but all walks of life. I love music that brings people together and this night was a prime example of the power of powerful music.
Lecrae came to the stage around 8:30 to huge LED screens that served as little interludes between songs chronicling his life from birth to the positive figure he is now. The first song, "Welcome To America" saw Lecrae perform with an american flag backdrop and a podium as he was giving a speech. This was America from his perspective, but often with the breaks that he took to speak to the crowd inspiring them, the artist used his story to infuse the energy that he gave in his hour set. The 808 and bass from "Dirty Water" had the whole place jumping - I mean literally from Lecrae and the crowd. "Give In" had an impressive light show reminiscent of an EDM show. The last song, "Say I Won't" had opener Andy Mineo come out to tear the house down.
The thing with Lecrae is that his music has abundant message with appeal to the younger generation. It may not be the status quo, but that's ok. To borrow from one of his songs, you can't be "scared to be different".
