Thursday, August 16, 2007

Recap: Da' T.R.U.T.H. / Youth Yahoo (7/27/07)

Da' T.R.U.T.H. rolled into town with Deitrick Haddon for the CRM Youth Yahoo event a few weeks ago. It was a rainy night on Houston Community College's main campus and there were a good 500 folks inside the main auditorium to hear the Word presented in both sermon and song form.

A.B.F.'s Sypreme did his best Kirk Franklin impression with the choir.
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Havikoro b-boy / Much Luvv recording artist / CRM youth pastor ColCutz introduced each minister and even did a track from his "Artistically Speaking" album.

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CY's Circus World Event Tour made a stop and once again, stole the show

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Mime time

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Switch it up in all black

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After CY's set the Youth Yahoo Ensemble hit the stage again. Heavy drums and traditional call-and-response worship songs got the crowd (even some older ladies) out of their seats dancing and clapping. One song proclaimed God's goodness for about 15 minutes straight.

Next up Cutz introduced Da' T.R.U.T.H. from the Cross Movement camp. For those that don't know, Truth's "Open Book" album hit #2 on the Billboard Gospel chart its first week out. That's a phenomenal achievement and should send a signal that this is a viable and marketable form of Good News music.

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Not sure if you can tell by the photos, but Da' T.R.U.T.H. hit the stage BIG time. A funny visual that struck me was the size of both his Bible and his boots. It was a coffee-table style "sWord" and the Timbos nearly met the top of his oversized denim shorts. A nice East Coast throwback.

After the intro, Da' T.R.U.T.H. did his "Who Am I" song (minus Tye Tribbet) that got the crowd rockin' and saw him doing a little struttin' during the song's funky breakdown ending.

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Unfortunately that was the only music he would do that night. Instead, he dove right into the Scriptures and exhorted the audience to persevere in their Christian faith. He pulled elements from 2 Timothy 2 and the party parable from Luke 14.

A fantastic note he made about the story was an answer to the question I've always had about why the host was upset with the guests who declined his invitation for seemingly valid reasons.

DT said that that fact that the host sent out his servant to find them indicates that these were people who had already RSVP'd and made a commitment to come to the feast. When they blew it off it hurt and offended the host.

Obviously, the analogy extends to those of us that have committed to Christ yet slack off on our walk for seemingly valid reasons when we really should be faithful.

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During his teaching, Da' T.R.U.T.H. tended to stand on the edge of the stage. Because of the lighting setup, it kept him in the shadows most of the time and his face was a bit concealed.

Given that he only performed one song and went straight to preaching it struck me that this habit of remaining hidden might be a conscious choice - as if he were declaring with his body language that he is willing to deny his own fame and "celebrity" status in deference to The Message. Even though it didn't make for a good "show," I have to admire the selflessness whether it was intentional or not.

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D Haddon hit the stage next but I had to bounce and missed most of his stage time. I'm told by ColCutz that it was a great night though and many kids gave turned their lives over to Christ at the end of the event. Let's keep them in prayer as CRM and other churches begin the process of making these converts into true disciples.

Saturday, August 4, 2007

Scene: Ras & Pettidee show / The Embassy Club / July 20

I'm late getting these up but wanted to share.

Pettidee was in town a few weeks ago and grabbed a show at The Embassy Club in Porter with Ras, Bless't, and Gangsta Loc.


Gangsta Loc, 007 (formerly of the 5th Ward Boyz), and Bless't
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Bless't hit it hard
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GLoc on backup
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Bless't gettin vocal
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After a few screamy rock bands, Ras took the stage for a solo set.

Ras rockin' his new King of the Block tee from his Eli Wear clothing line.
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And Pettidee made a hype-man appearance.

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The Embassy showed Ras' video for "Bank On That" on the wall as he performed the song.

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Petti listens to Ras spit.
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Petti's hype-man PreachaBoy (who you heard on Best of the Submissions) was there too.

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He's from that Sunshine State and will "show you how to get down on the freeway" (Peep that fly track on his page.)
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Then the Black Lion hit the stage for his speaker crushin' set.

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The Unified Outlaws
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Show 'em your tats P-Zilla
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Petti signs autographs for fans after the show.
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