In what was billed as its final live performance, Run-D.M.C. closed the massive Hip-Hop 50 Live celebration last night (Aug. 11) at New York’s Yankee Stadium, with surviving members Joseph “Run” Simmons and Darryl “D.M.C.” McDaniels running through classics such as “It’s Tricky,” “My Adidas,” “Mary Mary,” “King of Rock,” and “Walk This Way” as the clock pushed past 1 a.m.
Formed in 1983, Run-D.M.C. has rarely been seen on stage since the 2002 murder of its DJ and third member, Jam Master Jay. However, the group played a full set last week as part of the Rock the Bells tour stop in Forest Hills, N.Y., near its Queens-area home base of Hollis.
The performance last night capped an almost absurdly star-studded walk down hip-hop memory lane as part of the 50th anniversary celebration of the genre. Other highlights included a surprise appearance by Ms. Lauryn Hill for a mini Fugees set in the middle of Nas’ performance, Fat Joe doffing his shirt to show off his impressive, 200-plus-pound weight loss amid songs with Ashanti (“What’s Luv”), KRS-One (“Bronx Tale”), and Remy Ma (“Lean Back”), and Snoop Dogg teaming with Doug E. Fresh and Slick Rick for the old-school favorite “La Di Da Di”
The evening also featured appearances by members of the Wu-Tang Clan, Lil’ Kim, Cam’ron, Mobb Deep, A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, Wiz Khalifa, Ice Cube, Lil Wayne, and T.I. New York Yankees legend Derek Jeter even made a cameo during a Kid Capri DJ segment.
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