Review and gallery by JD Punisher Photography

Eatons Hill Hotel may be in the middle of nowhere, but out of all the venues in Brisbane, I couldn’t think of a better one to host Hip-Hop royalty for the 3:Twenty Tour. Tonight, we get our collective minds blown by the likes of Obie Trice, D12 and the one and only Xzibit. This was a night that will go down as one of the best the Eatons Grand Ballroom has ever seen.

On arrival, and I speak from the many times I’ve been to this venue for various heavy metal and punk gigs, the line out the door is huge, one of the biggest ive seen. There is such an eclectic gathering of people here tonight, die hard fans, heavy metal fans, young, old, just a great variety of people that prove that great music doesn’t cater to just one demographic, music is for ALL people.

DJ Ones arrives on stage to thunderous applause and soon gets the crowd moving with a medley of Hip-Hop brilliance. The green lights that surround him and the OBIE TRICE banner behind him perfectly frame his epic setup and its not too long before the vibe of the place is buzzing with anticipation for our show opener.

Obie Trice is a man that knows the Hip-Hop game well, having worked with some of the most iconic names in the business. But make no mistake, this man is a heavy hitter, and in my opinion, one of the best to ever spit lyrics into a mic. Paying tribute to their fallen brother DMX, Obie and co-MC Damien Smith raise an ‘X’ to the sky to show their comrade that they are still thought of and still a massive part of the rap game.

When busting out hit after hit, its hard to keep up with every bit of fire that is being launched into the mic, DJ Ones is there to assist with keeping the flow solid. The man has a charisma all of his own, and it makes you realise that Obie has trusted the decks to the right person to commemorate 20 years of Cheers. Proving his skills are unparalleled, spinning the intro to Eminem’s hit ‘Without Me’, the track soon stops to make way for the REAL into to the song that gives Obie the props he rightly deserves.

Closing out the set by welcoming a plethora of ladies to the stage to show off their dancing skills for the ‘Shake That’ remix, Obie and crew finish their set by showing they know how to raise the roof, and have fun doing it. I don’t think there was one lady on the stage that wasn’t grinning ear to ear, or one person in the crowd that didn’t look like they were having a bad time. That shit was infectious and brought the vibe of the night to a whole new level.

D12, well fuck. What can I say here? I never thought in a million years that I would get to see a D12 set live, let alone get to photograph such outstanding artists, yet here we are. Kaniva and Swifty McVay are gracing our stage tonight and I can tell you now, these fuckers came out swinging from the first beat and didn’t let up for the entire set. The setlist these guys have in front of them is massive. To touch on the iconic D12 World album for its anniversary while still hitting as many fan favourites as possible, is no easy feat, but they absolutely destroy it and leave us all wanting more.

Laying down the beats tonight is birthday boy DJ Invisible. This guy has not only the skills to accompany D12’s style, but also can spin the decks with shoes, beers and whatever else he wants to fuck with. Showmanship while displaying his skills seems second nature to this artist and its amazing to witness such prowess behind the decks.

Every track you want to hear is on the afore mentioned huge setlist, Purple Pills, Shit On You, Pistol Pistol, Fight Music, they’re all here. But when you close out the set with a track like My Band, its enough to get the whole crowd singing, dancing and generally just having the best time you could have on a Friday night. As D12 exits the stage, you know that there is plenty of people in the crowd that will be talking about this performance for years to come. Better come back soon fellas, the Aussie crowd loves you.

X to the muthafuckin Zeeeeeeeee! This man is the reason I wanted to be here tonight. The skills that this man possesses is phenomenal. Accept no substitutes, only Xzibit has the chops to spit the fire he does. Joining him to offer up some tasty flows tonight is Demrick. Now I’ve never seen or heard his rhymes, but this guy has got mad skills. The chemistry between these 2 MC’s is unfathomable, bouncing off each other’s hooks and just absolutely slaying the crowd with their refined skills is hard to explain to anyone that wasn’t there.

Now, if you think D12 had a massive setlist, Xzibit has one equally as hefty. Smashing it through hit after hit from State Of Hip-Hop, Multiply, LA Times and Paparazzi, there isn’t one stone left unturned by this powerhouse of a performer. Even dropping a few new tracks into the setlist to show that with over 30 years in the game he has refined his skills further (as if it was even possible for him to get better). This is true lyrical mastery in its purest form.

Getting fans on stage seems to be all the rage right now and when Xzibit welcomes one of the fans on stage to help with Alkoholik, we’re not sure what to expect, but fucking hell! This guy slays it all and doesn’t falter one bit for the whole track. Impressive skills from a local to prove us Aussie have what it takes in the rap game. Closing out the set with X, there’s not one person in Eatons that feels they didn’t get enough bang for their buck. This was epic to say the least and I’m looking forward to the possibility of more big name Hip-Hop artists to make their way to our country.

Departing Eatons Hill there’s a whopping sound of bass as everyone exits the carpark. You know that everyone is discussing their favourite part of the evening, although I’m sure there’s just as many people doing their own private performances from the comfort of their driver’s seat. Well done Eatons and DAL, we wanted the best and you provided it.