Tyga – Live At The IndigO2, London

Careless World tour hits the UK

Once upon a time being in a “crew” was almost like an unwritten rule of making it as a rapper. But in recent times, the likes of Dipset, Flipmode and Wu Tang are somewhat of a dying breed. But with the emergence – and dominance – of Lil Wayne’s Young Money clan proving that success in numbers is much more powerful, the crew era in hip hop is well and truly back.

With his labelmates Drake and Nicki Minaj exploding on the international charts, Tyga is the next YMCMB star to further solidify the rap collectives place as the number one squad in hip hop. Following the release of his sophomore album ‘Careless World: Rise of the Last King’, Tyga takes his Careless World tour to the UK to play a sold-out gig at London’s IndigO2.

The twenty-two-year-old MC is nearly an hour late, as the predominately young and equally mixed gender crowd excitedly waits for the Californian native to hit the stage. The lights dim and the curtains unveil, as the heavily tattooed star appears on the Pharaoh-themed stage to hordes of energetically screaming fans. Draped in a loose silky gold shirt, black shades and hat, he opens the show with snippets of verses from tracks, including ‘Bad B*tches’ and ‘Roger That’, which prompts a sea of raised smartphones and ecstatic hand gestures. From the get-go, the atmosphere in the Greenwich venue is up-tempo and more reminiscent of a rave, as revellers shake, move and bounce, whilst rapping along to every word.

The young MC goes back and forth between tracks from his numerous mixtapes, as well as songs from the new LP. Spitting verses from the likes of ‘Snapbacks Back’, ‘Make It Nasty’ and ‘Kings And Queens’ – keeping the show moving at a positively quick paste. At one point he dedicates ‘Dancing 4 Dollas’ to a “beauty in the front”, but considering the lyrics of the song, it makes for a rather awkward compliment. While the lyrical content on some songs are questionable, there’s no doubting the west coast rappers live delivery or stage presence on the night.

During the show, Tyga brings out his protégée, female rapper Honey Cocaine, who accompanies the Young Money star on their track ‘Heisman’. Honey also performs some solo material and while her dance-filled appearance provides differentiation, the petite MC’s partly pre-recorded vocals doesn’t match up to that of her mentors.

However, Tyga keeps the show swiftly moving, with ‘Faded’ and his verse from ‘Motto’ garnering rapturous applause from the already hyper crowd. But it’s the infectious ‘Rack City’ which is the highlight of the night and has audience at their peak.

Verses from ‘Deuces’ and ‘Bedrock’ are next, followed by latest single ‘Far Away’ – taken from the new album. And for the encore, a number of girls from the audience are chosen to join the stage, as a now topless Tyga (cue frenzied screaming from the female fans) performs ‘Rack City’ one more time.

Words by Vanessa Laker

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