Beside singing his ode to daughter Blue Ivy, the husband of Beyonce Knowles rocks the first of his two back-to-back benefit concerts with the help of Alicia Keys, Nas and a 36-piece orchestra.
- Feb 7, 2012
AceShowbiz - Jay-Z has brought his ode to new daughter Blue Ivy to New York's Carnegie Hall. Rocking the first of his two back-to-back benefit concerts on Monday, February 6, the rapper husband of Beyonce Knowles gave a sweet treat to those filling the Stern Auditorium at the historic venue with his first live performance of "Glory".
The dedication song wasn't the only treat Jigga offered to more than 2,000 fans in attendance though. The 42-year-old kicked off the evening with "PSA" and "Thank You" accompanied by a 36-piece orchestra. Wearing a white tuxedo jacket and black bow, he continued on performing "Heart of the City (Ain't No Love)".
Aside from singing more than dozen of his hits, Jigga also delivered a soulful spin on Billy Joel's "New York State of Mind" and did a quick take on Gil Scott-Heron's "New York Is Killing Me". He was joined by Alicia Keys for "Empire State of Mind", and collaborated with Nas on "N.Y. State of Mind".
After performing "Glory", Jigga told concertgoers, "I didn't think I was gonna make it through that one. That was tough." Going into his encore performance, he changed into black jeans and tee to perform "Big Pimpin' ". He later brought out Roc Nation singer Bridget Kelly to sing "Young Forever".
The Carnegie Hall concert lasted for around 90 minutes. Proceeds from the concert benefitted the United Way of New York City and the Shawn Carter Scholarship Foundation. While Jigga isn't the first Hip-Hop star to play at the famed venue, he's the first rapper to earn two nights running. He is set to perform once again on Tuesday, February 7.
