Live Review: Professor Green, Birmingham Academy, 9 December 2011
Hackney born rapper Professor Green smashed the tenth date of his biggest ever headline tour at the O2 Academy in Birmingham with help from support acts Rizzle Kicks and Dj IQ. Born as Stephen Manderson, Green has been through numerous traumas over the few past years with the suicide of his father and being attacked with a glass bottle in Shoreditch in 2009. Green has “lucky” tattooed on his neck and he refers to it in his number one chart hit track Read All About It, which features Emeli Sande which gave Green his first number one single. Since this show, Green has released Never Be a Right Time, a track that focuses on a relationship breakup and the emotions that it brings with it.
This tour was originally scheduled for October but was postponed until December. It was worth the wait with Rizzle Kicks, a newly formed duo from Brighton. Performing hit singles Mama Do the Hump and Down with the Trumpets, they really got the crowd warmed up for what was to be an amazing gig from Professor Green. He performed songs from his debut album Alive Till I’m Dead and tracks from his current album At Your Inconvenience with the help of his band and backing singers.
Straight after DJ IQ’s set that was full of chart hits, Professor Green bounded onto the stage singing the title track from his current album. He went straight on to perform City Of Gold and Oh My God, two upbeat and more familiar tracks from Alive Till I’m Dead. Green had the crowd head bopping along to DPMO, one of the better tracks featured on At Your Inconvenience. He switched it up and performed some of his very first few hits; Need You Tonight and Just Be Good to Green, which got the crowd singing along. Green sounded on top form and praised the crowd for being messier than ever and that he was glad to be back in Birmingham which made the crowd cheer loudly. Halfway through Green’s set, the crowd that consisted of all different ages and backgrounds started to lose control, with a quarter of them jumping around and expressing their love for Green by chanting his name at every given opportunity. The atmosphere inside the O2 must have left Professor Green feeling extremely pleased with himself.
To wrap up an amazing set, Green came back onto stage and performed an encore which included the hits Jungle and Avalon, before concluding with his number one hit, Read All About It. With the audience in great voice and showing their appreciation at every given opportunity, the gig was definitely enjoyed by all. Green was quick to announce another string of dates for April and May this year that will no doubt bring more crazy antics to the venues he is set to play.