Bugsey and Young T got Nottingham moving at their first hometown show in eight years, headlining Rescue Rooms. We were there to see it all...
Before the live acts, a DJ to warm up the crowd with some melodic rap tunes, one of these being Jack Harlow’s first-class, which got a good reception.
Then it was time for the first act, Forever DMV, whose performance fell a bit flat if I’m honest. His crowd participation and stage presence were decent, but his voice was drowned out by the backing track of his songs. Following this, a local rapper called Tenner took the stage. He did well in implementing a harsh delivery over dark rap beats, contrasting well with the artists before and after him. By doing this, he also gave us a taste of what would come later from the headliners. After this, Jorday took the stage, a singer and melodic rapper with a powerful voice and catchy hip-hop tunes. The supports set up the headline act quite nicely and you could feel the anticipation from a sold out 500-plus crowd.
Bugsey and Young T’s DJ revved up the crowd and got them to give the rappers a massive reception before they came on to a huge wave of cheers. With the hometown heroes back, they wasted no time playing their hits.
They started their set with 4x4, a wavy tune and a big crowd favourite. As they got to the chorus the whole venue began singing “Now I hop out the 4 by 4 man jump out one by one”.
The rappers’ crowd participation was amazing throughout the gig. Both were constantly going right at the end of the stage to do handshakes with the crowd. On top of this, they each picked a side of a room to cheer for them. Bugsey claimed the right side saying, “I already know this is my side”. Then both rappers got their sides to cheer and scream in competition with each other.
Another standout song in the set list was Gangland, a song with an arguably even catchier chorus of “Guns go bang bang, lifestyle gangland”. But the highlight came in the pre-chorus “Running from the boys in blue, all I hear is nee-nor nee-nor”.
These lines touch on the paranoia of living in and around gun crime and gang violence in the UK, which Nottingham itself has struggled with in recent years. When the track began, a member of the crowd behind me commented, “This is real Nottingham s***” which I think sums it up perfectly.
After their last song, the duo received a seismic ovation from the crowd, interacted with them some more, and then walked off like the legends they were.
All in all, this was a hugely successful return show and a great night out. Anyone who missed this show is not to worry as they will be in London next week performing.
If that’s too far, don’t worry, as I got confirmation from Bugsey himself that they will be back in Nottingham “next year”. That show will be a must-see for all you grime and rap lovers from Nottingham, so I’ll see you guys there.
Young T & Bugsey performed at Rescue Rooms on 29th October 2024.
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