The magnitude of the occasion was not lost on the crowd.
They were witnessing nothing less than four of the greatest rappers of all time — Ice Cube, Snoop Dogg, Too $hort and E-40 — perform onstage at the same time during Day 2 (Saturday, May 28) at the BottleRock Napa Valley festival.
“This is Mount Westmore,” Oakland rapper Too $hort said to the massive crowd assembled before the festival’s Verizon Stage. “This is the foundation of West Coast hip-hop.”
They would then go about underscoring that claim, running through some 90 minutes of hip-hop classics — a number of which rank among the most beloved songs the genre has ever produced.
Ice Cube, as he is wont to do, stole the show whenever he touched the microphone. The N.W.A legend sounded as strong and fresh as ever as he rolled mightily through such songs as “Check Yo Self.”
Yet, every member of the quartet had ample room to shine during the set, with Snoop Dogg impressing with “Gin and Juice,” Vallejo’s E-40 rocking the crowd with “Tell Me When to Go” and Too $hort cruising through “Gettin’ It.”
The set also included pole dancers and 49ers tight end George Kittle, who E-40, a big Niners fan, brought on stage near the end of the set. Not surprisingly, that brought an NFL rebuttal of sorts from Silver-and-Black loyal Too $hort, who then led the crowd in a Raiders chant.
The audience seemed to love every minute of the affair, holding their drinks in the air and shouting along to the rhymes. One crowd member even went so far as to perform a Jimmy Page-style air-guitar solo during “Nuthin’ But a G Thang,” which might have been a first for that song.
The set closed with “It Was a Good Day,” which was a little less amazing than usual since Cube cut the number short — possibly because the group was bumping right up against the festival’s hard 10 p.m. curfew — and leaving this critic without the satisfaction of yelling the lyric “2 in the morning get the Fatburger” at top volume.
Delta Goodrem shines at BottleRock
One other massive highlight from Day 2 was Delta Goodrem. The singer-songwriter-pianist has long been a huge star in her native Australia, where she has sold millions of albums and filled arenas with thousands of adoring fans.
Truly, if BottleRock was held in Sydney, rather than Napa, she likely would have topped the bill. Instead, Goodrem — who is not all that well known in the U.S. — performed before a few hundred fans on one of the secondary stages somewhat early in the day.
Goodrem would use the showcase to deliver the best set I’ve seen at the 2022 BottleRock Napa Valley festival, topping even the masterpiece that mighty Metallica delivered on Day 1. Her voice was amazing — so strong, clear and engaging. Her vocal work is comparable to, and on par with, the likes of Carrie Underwood and, even my favorite female country artist, Martina McBride.
Yet, Goodrem is more than just a premiere vocal talent. She’s the full package as a performer — equally brilliant on the piano, engaging the crowd and fronting her sensational band.
During a short interview after the show, the singer mentioned to me that it’s been quite a number of years since she last visited the U.S. Let’s hope this BottleRock appearance is the start of something big for Goodrem in the states and that millions of listeners in North American will soon know about this amazingly talented performer.
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