Fans filed into the Jefferson Theater last week to watch Lupe Fiasco perform his “For the Fans” tour. Fresh from the release of his 2015 album, “Tetsuo & Youth,” and with three more releases scheduled this year, Fiasco created this tour as a tribute to the fans who have stood by him through his long, often turbulent, career.
His fans’ loyalty has definitely been tested over the years. Fiasco fought through a nasty relationship with his former label, Atlantic Records, and has often faced backlash for his social media exploits. Upon the release of last year’s album, Fiasco spoke to Billboard about his place in today’s hip-hop landscape.
“I'm not as relevant as I was before,” Fiasco said. “It's kind of that natural irrelevancy that occurs with all artists. I think I had my peak, and now I am coming down in relevancy.”
Despite this, he has retained an impressive longevity, demonstrated by the generational clash evident from his concertgoers — the older generation, committed to Fiasco since his feature on Kanye West’s 2005 release, “Touch the Sky,” meets the younger generation, who likely took to Fiasco’s pop sensibilities with 2011’s “Lasers.”
Both groups were seemingly surprised to see each other represented at this concert, but Fiasco had something for everyone, with a setlist sporting many of his classics. There were no songs off of “Tetsuo & Youth,” but the vast majority of those in attendance did not seem to mind. Fans bellowed to the hook on “Battlescars,” and they basked in the rapid-fire rhyming of “Go Go Gadget Flow,” yet something seemed off. This was a celebration of Fiasco’s career to date, and the occasion was not lost on anyone — except the artist himself.
Throughout the entire night, Fiasco seemed detached, like his energy had stalled out. With his mind seemingly on other things, he would often wait out his song’s hooks while gazing up at the ceiling or staring at the floor. The only uptick in his energy came when he performed certain sets with Billy Blue, one of the show’s opening acts. Otherwise, he never engaged with the Charlottesville crowd, nor did he give an encore.
Of course, these are not characteristics to which any paying fan is entitled. One would be hard-pressed to find a fan who did not come away at least satisfied with hearing their favorite songs sung with the fiery support of thousands of fellow fans. This is the boilerplate concert experience. However, artists can straddle a thin line between reciting their songs and actually performing them, and Fiasco seemed uninterested in crossing over. Considering the rave reviews his next-day performance in New York received, one must wonder why Lupe Fiasco seemed so hellbent on leaving the Jefferson Theater stage the second he arrived upon it.
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