Jill Scott – “Golden”
Anyone who has listened to R&B in the past fifteen years should be familiar with the great Jill Scott. Along with queens Erykah Badu, India Arie, Angie Stone, Alicia Keys, and more recently Janelle Monae, Ms. Scott has helped fortify quality music in the new millennium. In 2000, I first heard her on “Getting in the way” from her debut album Who is Jill Scott? Words and Sounds Vol. 1. However, I was introduced to her work on The Roots’ classic “You got me” in 1999. Although it was sung by Badu, it was written by Scott. I read that she was disappointed that her Philadelphia brothers The Roots would have someone else sing her song. But, it was a strategic marketing move, considering that Badu was established and well-known and Scott was not. Understanding the business is what has helped Jill to last fifteen years in the music industry, where most barely get fifteen minutes. After watching her perform “You got me” with Badu and The Roots on the Dave Chappelle’s Block Party movie, I knew that I wanted to see her perform live! Well, I got my chance when I found out she was coming to the Mahaffey Theater in St. Petersburg – bought tickets as soon as they went on-sale!
Jill Scott, owning the stage!
Opening for Miss Scott was Bronx, NY native singer/rapper Tish Hyman. I had never heard of this artist until now, but I was pleasantly surprised. Armed with her laptop, a bottle of water, and overflowing confidence, she introduced herself to the welcoming audience and commenced with “All that I can do” from her forthcoming debut album Dedicated To. She proceeded to perform “Subway Art”, her first single from the album, which has received attention from Alicia Keys, Kanye West, and Fabolous. As she continued with “Stranger”, “Christmas”, “Dream” and “Four-letter word”, Hyman flexed rhyming and singing skills reminiscent of Lauryn Hill, to which whom she has been compared. Tish was also the first female emcee to freestyle on Sway in the Morning’s 5 Fingers of Death in 2015, receiving phenomenal reviews.
Soul vibrations with the queen, Jill Scott.
After Tish’s set, we patiently waited for Jill to take the stage. I’m not sure what was causing a near 30-minute delay, since the instruments were already setup, but it was ok (sort of)… since it was for Jill Scott. Once the players began coming onto the stage, you could hear the anticipation in the audience. With lights low, the band started playing “Gimme” as her introduction. As she strode out on stage, the place erupted. It was pure funk and rock from the first note she sang, as she continued into the next song. Performing classics, including “The Way”, “A Long Walk” and “It’s Love”, she kept the crowd captivated and grooving non-stop. Ms. Scott made sure to bless us with gems from her new album Woman, including the reflective “Fool’s Gold”, the definitive “Closure”, and a wonderful acoustic version of the bluesy “You Don’t Know” with her backup singers The Pipes. There’s no doubt that Jill is as attractive (some may even say sexy) as she is talented. But there were moments where she was comically raunchy; simulating fellatio with the microphone, as well as sexual acts and orgasms. Even still, she kept it classy and honest – as always. In between songs, she took time to speak on love, sacrifice, and self-worth, which was very much inspiring. After inviting all haters to “Hate on Me”, Jill proved why she is the current reigning Queen of R&B, and will remain “Golden”.
Jill Scott and The Pipes, performing “You Don’t Know”
Vinyl Words 