N.E.R.D.
2003. My friend Claire Holroyd worked at CAA and part of her job was to help make the 2003 Sprite Liquid Mix Tour happen. The tour featured N.E.R.D, O.A.R., The Roots, Talib Kweli, Robert Randolph and the Family Band, and Skillz. Not a show I would make an effort to see but Claire was nice enough to give me a pair of ticket to the Irvine, CA show at the Verizon Amphitheater. Chris Toms and I made the drive down to Orange County to see the show. We got there a little late and we missed some of the bands. I'm pretty sure we saw The Roots but I can't remember who else we saw. To this day I still don't know who O.A.R. are. The seats weren't that great but the tickets were free. Before N.E.R.D. took the stage I got up with Claire and she got us backstage. We watched N.E.R.D. start their show from the side of the stage and before I knew it, like any good hip hop show, I was part of the posse watching the show onstage behind the band. I stood right behind the drummer, looking out over the audience, for a good part of the show. If you've ever wondered who are those people hanging out onstage behind a rapper for no apparent reason, they could be friends of the artist, or they could be some idiot like me who just happens to know someone involved with the show. I recently found some pics from that night.
