Danny Brown at Yonge-Dundas Square

Danny Brown has always been known for his eccentric raps and his crazy hair. He brought both of these attributes last night to Yonge and Dundas Square. The rapping was from songs we know and love, such as Monopoly, Kush Coma and Dip, but the hair was unlike anything we have seen from Danny Brown before. His hair is much shorter and now frosted at the tips with a very bright green dye. He waltzed onto the stage with this new hair style, his Lennon glasses and his t shirt donning the late Lou Reed on it. Brown looked classier than ever but still his usual wacky self. Even if he came out in a suit and a top hat, we’d know it’s the same Danny Brown simply because he loves to throw the metal horns and stick his tongue out demonically every two minutes or so. Still, he is getting a better sense of how to identify himself as a rock star and he pulled it off both visually and musically.

Brown spat verses with such calamity that it was as though he was reading off the news reel that a big storm was coming. His body language said otherwise, however, as his facial expressions were constantly hinting that everything he said was through sarcasm or in jest. He rarely talked in between songs until near the end when he promoted the use of marijuana before his appropriately named song Blunt After Blunt. He made this announcement with each sentence strung by giggles and his signature gapped tooth smile visible from a kilometer away. While he acted like his usual silly self, his rapping was as good as it could be and he was clearly very serious about his work. The Danny Brown I was expecting, the hyperactive jester, only came out later on once Danny Brown knew his set was going well. When I was in the photo pit, I captured pictures that mostly showed a rapper focused on perfection. We often forget how talented Brown truly is as we often identify with his personality and his crude jokes. You could definitely tell that Brown is someone that is thrilled to be where he is, especially since his career only took off when he was in his thirties. He’s appreciative of where he is, but he never forgets the hard work that got him there. Luckily for us, it’s never too late to experience the kind of fun Danny Brown naturally exudes, and this good time works on a whole new level live.