Ghostface Killah @ The Blockley.

Ghostface Killah took the stage at The Blockley well after midnight, all geared-up in Mitchell & Ness. He played up to the excited crowd by hyping Philly repeatedly.

Clearly, the man knew his audience.

He even invited a few people from the audience to jump on stage to perform ODB’s portion of the Wu-Tang classic “Protect Ya Neck.”

“This being Philly and all,” Ghost said, “if he don’t earn it, you tell him.”

And when the first audience member goofed up, the crowd booed mercilessly. The next person busted out the ODB lines perfectly and the crowd went wild.

Reef the Lost Cauze

Mike Voss

Jakk Frost

It was a night full of good vibes all around – for the most part. Local emcees Reef the Lost Cauze, Jakk Frost, Get Up and a few others popped on stage unexpectedly, adding to the lineup which featured Philly stars Chill Moody and Mike Voss. Mic Stew and MC Elixir from Skratch Makanics hosted the show.

After Chill’s performance, Get Up, Mic Stew, Jakk Frost and a few others freestyled. They abruptly stopped just before midnight, making everyone think Ghost was about to take the stage.

Then Adrian Younge and Venice Dawn took the stage and performed a 45-minute set of prog rock/60s era soul/psychedelia that just seemed to confuse the crowd. They featured pounding drums that would have made the perfect backdrop to a hip-hop set but rather than lead into Ghost, they performed their own stuff. They were extremely talented but not what the crowd wanted. During a dramatic pause in one song, the crowd started chanting “Wu-Tang! Wu-Tang!”

Eventually, Ghost came out, with Adrian Younge and the band backing him while clad in Venetian carnival masks. Ghost went through a bunch of tracks from his 20 year catalogue, much to the audience’s delight – they rhymed right along with him on nearly every song.

Younge interrupted the fun a few times to follow the script of Ghost’s new album, Twelve Reasons To Die, which follows the life of Tony Starks – Ghost’s Mafioso alter ego – and his adventures with the DeLuca crime family.

Around 1 am, there was a break in the show – in the script, Ghost as Tony Starks was killed when his body was dumped in a vat of boiling oil at a record plant. Many people left. Afterward, however, Ghost returned – they didn’t kill Tony Starks. He was reborn in vinyl.

It was strange and unnecessary. Even Ghost seemed uninterested in the theatrics – while the band was dressed in black suits, red shirts and skinny black ties, Ghost looked like he could have been hanging at McFadden’s after a Phillies game.

Whatever. Ghost was full of energy and the sound was fantastic. It was great seeing a legend who still rocks.

Chill Moody

MC Elixir and Mic Stew