Flatbush Zombies Pick Up Momentum After Rocky Start At Converse Rubber Tracks Live Show

Things got off to a rough start prior to yesterday’s free Flatbush Zombies show at the Music Hall of Williamsburg in Brooklyn, NY. Hosted by Fool’s Gold Records and part of the Converse Rubber Tracks Live series, the show was supposed to have a lineup of GrandeMarshall, 100s, and Flatbush Zombies. Unfortunately, due to an issue with his flight, the Berkeley MC was unable to make it to New York for the show. As the lines started to form around the block for the show, a heavy police presence was felt in the area and security was uptight at the door trying to control the crowds.

But once inside Nick Catchdubs had the young crowd dancing hard to all the latest turn up anthems and trap music. And with 100s out of the picture, word began to circulate that A$AP members Twelvy and Nast would be taking his spot and anticipation began to build. Before any artists even hit the stage, a few teenaged fans were heading towards the back of the room with bloody noses and busted lips.

GrandeMarshall hit the stage first and the Fool’s Gold signee performed cuts off of his mixtape Mugga Man. While the crowd wasn’t entirely familiar with his body of work, the Philly native did a good job of holding his own but with a crowd ready to get rowdy to A$AP and Flatbush Zombies, his style was not the best fit for the bill. Before leaving the stage, he made sure to remind fans that his upcoming project My Brother’s Keeper is coming soon.

Between performances, Nick Catchdubs came back out for another impressive set and brought the energy in the room back up. While Catchdubs and A$AP’s DJ switched computers, the music cut off but the crowd didn’t miss a beat as they yelled out the lyrics to Flatbush’s “Thug Waffle” in unison. Once the DJ was situated, Nast and Twelvy touched the stage with a performance of “Trilla” off of Rocky’s Live.Love.A$AP. The two let the fans know that this was an impromptu performance and after running through Nast’s “Trillmatic”, Twelvy’s “Xscape”, and a new song they performed at Coachella (potentially titled “I Got Hoes”), the duo jumped into the crowd and were gone almost as quickly as they came.

With the majority of the crowd there to see Flatbush Zombies, the vitality was sweltering throughout the building. As stagehands set up the stage to look like a scene straight from Halloween, fans began to chant “Zombie” at full force. Right on cue, Zombie Juice sprinted out from backstage as the haunting piano riff from “My Team Supreme 2.0” rang out. With his hair tied back, and hands and wrists taped, Juice looked more professional wrestler than rapper. With all eyes on Juice, the eccentric MC channeled his inner New Age Outlaws while introducing his comrades, Erick “Arc” Elliott and Meechy Darko. Donned in a ski mask and guzzling a 40 of Olde English, Meech slammed his drink down on the DJ’s table and then...silence.

With his laptop drenched in malt liquor, the group’s DJ was left with no music forcing the trio to spit acapella as they scrambled for a solution. Meech, taking full responsibility, hopped into the crowd and performed his verse from “Thug Waffle” and with an iPod acting as the only alternative, the music kicked back in with “MRAZ” and the mosh pits resumed. The group ran through cuts from their most recent project, BetterOffDEAD and brought out Bodega Bamz to perform “Thrilla” off of Bodega’s Strictly 4 My P.A.P.I.Z. They then performed “Bliss” before Meech took a Swanton Bomb into the crowd during “Bath Salts." Out of breath, shirtless, and shoeless, Flatbush Zombies ended a show that got off to a rocky start with “Amerikkan Pie."

All’s well that ends well.--Peter Walsh

Previously: Backstage With Flatbush Zombies
Flatbush Zombies Team With Bodega Bamz In New Video