Jay Z opened to a usual stupendous sold-out show at Yas Marina Circuit at du Arena with more than 37, 000 people Friday night.If star power could be depicted visually and measured emotionally, Jay Z’s presence was a reminder for the crowd that the Middle East was experiencing a big moment in history. With his trademarked influential attire, supporting a Brooklyn Nets hat, Jay Z was dressed in “all black everything” with a heavy gold chain around his neck. The chanting crowds swayed along with his opening songs like "You Don’t Know" from The Blueprint, "On To The Next One" from The Blueprint 3. Surviving a mid-set power cut and a generator blowout, Timbaland walked on stage rewarding the confusion. “It was so banging we blew a generator,” he said. Jay Z asked the crowd "You guys ready to take this up another level? Tell the kids to put their hands over their ears, it’s grown-up time,” and dropped "99 problems," one of the biggest hits in his career.
Selling over 50 million albums worldwide, Jay Z has won 17 Grammy Awards and is easily the biggest name in the music industry since he got into the music industry in 1988. After the blowout, every time Jay Z walked away from the stage, hesitation grew thick in the air, as thousands echoed a feeling that did not want the show to end. But luckily, unlike all those good things coming to an end, legends like Jay Z, they live on. He performed Holy Grail, Run This Town, Tom Ford, f**kwithmeyouknowigotit, Hard Knock Life, his Punjabi rap hit and Numb (his collaboration with Linkin Park) among many others.Later, Jay Z asked, “Can I get an encore, do you want more? After me, there should be no more.
”Needless to say he left us all, wanting more.The crowd was held captive by the rapper who has been consistently ranked as one of the greatest rappers of all time. He is one of the most financially successful hip-hop artists and entrepreneurs with a net worth at nearly $500 million in 2012, according to Forbes. Connecting with the audience while sharing the electrifying energy, he spent the last ten minutes pointing out to fans in the audience and gave a shout out to all those who came out to support him.The event was part of the after race concerts at the 2013 Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The organizers announced that the Grand Prix is a complete sold-out for the fifth year in a row on Tuesday. More than 55,000 fans from more than 80 countries are expected to attend the event. After-race concert on October 31 featured Elissa, Amr Diab and local singer Hussain Al Jassmi. The international line-up included Jay-Z on November 1, Muse on November 2 and Depeche Mode on November 3. The 2013 Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix was being held at Yas Marina Circuit from October 31 to November 3.
By Mariam Nihal
