A 'kiss' of hip-hop

Decked in all Syracuse apparel, hip-hop heavyweight Jadakiss proclaimed his admiration for our school during his concert at Goldstein Auditorium last Friday.

Billing himself “An Orange at heart," Jadakiss shared his dissapointment that the men’s basketball team lost to Butler in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA basketball tournament.

Clearly, one of the most recognizable hip-hop artists out today knew how to connect to his crowd.

Regardless of a turnout that only filled about a quarter of Goldstein, Jadakiss still gave those in attendance a good show while interacting with everyone there. His hit singles “Knock Yourself Out," “Time’s Up” and “You Can’t Stop Me” were just a few that he blessed audience members, who recited verses and danced along.

Formerly of the rap trio The Lox, Jadakiss came to Syracuse with years of rap stardom underneath his belt. His original rap style and the content behind his lyrics separate him from many hip-hop artists today.

After years of performing with superstars like P. Diddy, DMX and the late Notorious B.I.G, Jadakiss found success as a solo artist this past decade. All of his solo albums (Kiss the Game Goodbye, Kiss of Death, The Last Kiss) performed well, each selling more than 300,000 copies.

Check out Jadakiss and friends backstage before his SU show in this video. WARNING: Not too surprising, but this video contains some explicit language.

Once on stage, Jadakiss performed his 2004 single “Why?” where he questions violence, politics, and some of the decisions celebrities made. Among the many questions, he asked “Why I say the hottest s---, but be sellin’ the least?”

Also, Jadakiss performed “Letter to B.I.G.," a song dedicated to Notorious B.I.G. During the song, much of the crowd took out their cell phones and lighters in tribute to the rap legend.

Questioning if fans were hyped enough for his show, Jadakiss asked, “Are you tired? Because I can go home right now!”

It was obvious that fans didn’t want to leave. But once they did, they'll have to only wait until May 1 for more Jadakiss when he releases his mixtape The Champ is Here Part 3.