preview by: Jade Salazar

“Not until you’ve listened to Rakim on a rocky mountain top have you heard hip hop. Extract the urban element that created it and let and open, wide countryside illustrate it.”

Alright DC, I hope you’re as fired up as I am. Tonight The Black Cat will be graced with one of the most revolutionary hip hop artists of our time. If you know Saul Williams, I will already be seeing you there. However, if this name is new to you, just buy a ticket and prepare yourself for beautifully intricate poetry, beats that make you want to dance and take a road trip at the same time, and perhaps some social and political statements that will leave you thinking for the next month. You will not be disappointed.

I was first introduced to Saul Williams in the most perfect setting imaginable. A new kid in a new city at her first drag king show. After a string of pop performances, the lights dimmed and one silent but strong drag king took the stage in full face paint. Then proceeded to do the most captivating modern dance to “Black Stacey”. The entire wild crowd went silent and was left speechless for well after the song ended. Every word stuck in me like a knife that I couldn’t shake. I got home and immediately devoured every Saul Williams song I could find. This man single-handedly revived my faith in music at a time when everything I had heard for what seemed like years sounded exactly the same. I will even go as far as to say he birthed my love of hip hop.

Aside from his music, Saul Williams is also an acclaimed actor and slam poet. After starring in and helping write 1998′s “Slam”, the film won The Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival and The Cannes Camera D’Or. He has also been involved in such films as SlamNation, Lackawanna Blues, The N Word, and K-PAX. He has worked with names like Trent Reznor, Rick Rubin, Erykah Badu, KRS-One, and Allen Ginsberg. On top of his mounting accolades in film and music, Williams is also a published poet, writing such books as, “Said the Shotgun to The Head”, “S/He”, “The Seventh Octave” and “The Dead Emcee Scrolls”. It seems that no matter what aspect of art you have come to appreciate most, Saul Williams has something that will stimulate your mind and stick with you for a long time to come.

I wish I could tell you what to expect from this elusive creature of the universe, but one of the best parts about this show is that there is no telling which of or how many sides he will chose to offer to fans tonight. He is a man of talent and mystery and all I can hope is that he rocks his recent look of feathers and face paint. I hope to see you all there. I will be the one popping and locking and singing along to every word.

Albums Include:

• Volcanic Sunlight(2011)
• The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of Niggy Tardust(2007)
• Saul Williams(2004)
• Not in My Name(2003)
• Amethyst Rockstar(2001)

Your Preshow Pump Up Playlist:

• Black Stacey
• List of Demands(Reparations) ..which you may remember from a popular Nike commercial
• Explain My Heart
• Look to The Sun
• Girls Have More Fun
• Tao of Now
• Penny for A Thought
• Om Nia Merican
• Talk To Strangers
• Grippo
• Scared Money
• WTF!
• Twice The First Time
• Pedagogue of Young Gods
• Fall Up
• New Day