As we all know, 4/20 is a holiday that Colorado is known for celebrating. Every year on 4/20 and the dates surrounding it, famous artists and known celebrities always make sure to make their way to Colorado to partake in the festivities. One of the biggest duos in Hip Hop history Method Man & Redman should have a residence here in Denver because they have been hosting their annual 4/20 concert at Cervantes Masterpiece Ballroom for over 10 plus years now. The opening act for the night was an artist who goes by the name of Supreme-Intelligence, and he also happens to be the son of Wu-Tang legend Ghostface Killah. He has two projects that he performed tracks from, one titled The Love Jones EP, released in 2021, and the other is a 2022 release titled Road To Soul Ep. He did a great job with his performance and, in many ways, has a similar stage presence and element to his craft, just like his own father.
Cervantes has always been known for having two different venues in one location, and on this particular night, both sides of the building were packed out. One side was filled with Hip Hop fans ready to see Meth & Red, and The Other Side was filled with fans eager to see the legendary reggae trio Pepper. The crowd was very anxious to hear and see Method Man and Redman, but they did not have to wait long as the pair was backstage but still addressing the crowd via microphone as hip hop classics from the 90s and early 2000’s played. Suddenly their DJ asked the people in attendance whether they were ready for the moment of the night, and after being met by nothing but screams, the lights in the building went utterly dark soon after. Demanding everyone’s attention, Meth & Red came out to the song Errbody Scream, which features Keith Murray (someone who played a significant role in the early years of Redmans career). Method Man had on a plain white tee shirt with purple sweats on from his new marijuana-based brand named Tical, and Redman had on a black and yellow vans shirt with vans to match the shirt. The duo began to perform songs from their respective solo music careers, such as Time 4 Sum Aksion, Bring The Pain, M.E.T.H.O.D Man, and I’ll Be Dat. During a quick smoke break (because what would 4/20 be like without weed), the duo then performed Raekwon’s song Ice Cream, Redman’s song Tonight Is Da Night, and Redman’s song titled Pick It Up.
Growing up, my big brother and cousins used to play Wu-Tang Shaolin Style, the PlayStation 1 game. So it was unreal to me that I was getting to experience the duo live in person, but what felt more mythical than that was seeing the team perform the classic Mary J Blige featured track I’ll Be There For You /You’re All I Need. The audience sang the track word for word, to the point that the two didn’t even have to utter a word. An artist named StreetLife, who happens to be a long-time Wu-Tang affiliate, came to the stage and performed a song with Redman and Method Man and then kicked off a freestyle for the crowd that lasted about 3-4 minutes. The duo moved on from solo singles and started to perform songs from the How High: Soundtrack and their debut album titled Blackout!. One of the night’s highlights was when the DJ played Ol Dirty Bastard‘s platinum single Shimmy Shimmy Ya from his 1995 solo debut album Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version. Redman talked about his new single, Jane, which had been released the same day as the show; the duo also thanked the crowd and Cervantes for allowing them to come back year after year right before performing their biggest single to date as a group Da Rockwilder. There were 19 songs performed in total by the two, and at the end of the show, I got to hang out with Meth & Red and bring my 4/20 in the right way (If you know what I mean!).
