Last night, in an effort to pick up some much needed tickets to Nas' concert at Blender Theatre, I passed by the Virgin Megastore in Union Square to check out his instore. Good lord! There were so many people there, (Reportedly over 1,000) and the line was wrapped around the corner and then some. Apparently, a few lucky fans who attended this instore signing had a chance to win tickets, but we managed to get the hook up. Thanks Joseph! Concert re-cap after the jump! When I got to the venue at around 7:30, I noticed that my pass said that it was good only until 8pm. I looked at the line wrapped around the building, and told myself that there is no way in hell that I would get in it. I really didn't know what to expect when I got there, since I got the tickets at the last minute. Low and behold, a young lady that I knew spotted me and offered to let me sneak in the line with her. Yes! I didn't have a special V.I.P. pass, because I was going as a fan and not press, but jumping the line is almost just as good! I got inside in no time, and managed to make my way to the VIP section, with the help of a few of my boys. (There was no way that I was standing in that sweatbox of a crowd. It was extra hot in the venue.) When I got there, I scanned the crowd, and jammed to old school hip hop classics played by Mr. Cee and DJ Enuff, especially since it was almost 2 hours before Nas would actually hit the stage. While skimming the crowd, I managed to spot Polow tha Don, LA Reid, Amanda Diva, and the homie, Low Key, from Youheardthatnew.com. I also spotted Mrs. Nas herself, Kelis! Let me just first say that ILOVE HER and was extra pumped when she walked by us. She is one of my favorite artists! In fact, I spent the later part of the night trying my hardest to snap a pic of her. Thanks to my homie, Monee for getting this pic for me. Nas finally hit the stage, and looked really good. It amazes me that this man has not aged at all since the 90s. He did a lot of his new songs from the new album, including Be a N*gger Too and Hero, during which the fabulous Keri Hilson made a surprise appearance. I don't think the crowd really cared, though, because she didn't really get a reaction. I think everyone just wanted to see him. He also did all of the old classics that I like, including The World is Yours, Oochie Wally, One Mic, Life's a Bitch, Street Dreams, and more. The crowd was going wild! Here is a clip of him performing If I Ruled the World: During and at the end of his performance, he kept throwing shots at Al Sharpton, ("I don't have a perm"), saying we need more and better Black leaders. He was also hinting at the fact that he could be one of these leaders. Hmmmm...This we will have to see. All in all, Nas is definitely having the best week ever. His album is getting critical acclaim, and he performed for an enthusiastic packed house. I think the old Nas is back, and he's not going anywhere. I'm happy I got a chance to experience this concert, and we're looking forward to the next one. For the after-party re-cap, visit Straight Outta NYC