Concert brings down the rink

Redman and Method Man headlined the Penn Relays concert. There was nothing chilly about the Class of 1923 Ice Rink last night. With the slamming beats of Method Man and Redman in full effect, the building was red hot. About 2,000 students and community members came to watch the rappers break it down at the Penn Relays concert, which is held annually during the international track and field event. The audience roared when the famed rhyming duo took the stage after midnight. The nearly three-hour wait for the duo dragged on throughout the night and the crowd eventually became restless. Audience members began chanting: "We want Redman" as they waited. But the wait was worth it. The rappers wowed the audience -- who jumped up and down and sang along while the performers hammered the audience with their raucous lyrics and flashy stage show. Method Man climbed on top of the speakers and rapped to the masses. Later in the show he leapt into the crowd, which greeted him with delight. And when the two performed "Blackout," the title song from their recent platinum album, all the lights in the venue were turned off. "Method Man and Redman definitely delivered despite the delay in arriving," said Kwasi Asare, a College junior. Social Planning and Events Committee to Represent Undergraduate Minorities organized the highly successful event, which also featured Stone Rivers, Ram Squad and Rah Diggah as the opening acts. And Method Man's fellow Wu-Tang Clan member Ghostface Killah showed up to perform before the stars. His compelling personal lyrics drew loud screams from the largely Wu-Tang- loving crowd. All the opening acts interacted with the crowd, throwing CDs and T-shirts to the eager audience members. The big-name show drew students from other area universities, including Temple and Drexel universities. "I've been a Redman fan for a while," said Ato Swann, a Drexel senior, adding that the two stars were a great collaboration. During the lengthy wait for the lead act, emcees held a freestyling concert, a strip competition and a breakdance-off, among other entertainments, to kill the time. And ultimately as the show let out at 1:30 a.m, the exhausted crowd said the wait was worth it. "The end of the semester is very stressing so the concert was a great way to get out and let loose a little," Engineering sophomore Laura Lin said. Method Man has been a member of the world-renowned Wu-Tang Clan since 1993 and Redman's artistry has been applauded since he released his first album in 1992. The duo have been trading rhymes and rhythms for years and recently collaborated on the album Blackout, which went platinum after being released last September. Penn Relays concerts in the past few years have featured the Fugees and Busta Rhymes.

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