(I wrote this back in 2002 and submitted it for a writing class. Republishing it here for posterity.)
After the September 11th tragedy, anything depicting the recently destroyed World Trade Centers quickly came to hold deep sentimental meaning. They became instant symbols of liberty and freedom for all Americans. So it is easy to imagine the public shock upon the discovery of a CD that was to have been released in late September 2001 with an image of the Trade Centers exploding ¾ ways up. Even more eerie and outrageous was that the CD’s cover design predated September 11th.
The band responsible for the CD and its cover was called The Coup and its members, “Boots” Riley and Pam the Funkstress became infamous celebrities. “Boots” appeared on television shows such as Politically Incorrect and Fox News’s Hannity and Colmes. It was with this backdrop that I went to Tallahassee’s dance club, the Moon, to see the Coup live on Tuesday, April 9th, 2002.
Doors opened to the Moon at 7:30pm and the opening act, “The Human Beatbox” Kenny Muhammed, was supposed to be on stage at 8:30. Because the show was sponsored by Florida State University, admission was free. I arrived about 8, expecting at least a small crowd. To my surprise, I was one of the first eight people in the club.
8:30 came and went and still there were fewer than 30 people in the club. I think the lack of attendance made the club’s manager a little nervous, the powers that be pushed Kenny Muhammed’s performance back an hour.
Although at first I was bothered by the delay, I used the time to my advantage. I started a conversation with a very attractive brunette dressed in nothing but a skimpy rubber mini skirt. She was from Philadelphia and part of a traveling Sobe energy drink marketing squad. Her and her team had a booth in the rear of the club and gave out trinkets, sample CDs, and taste tests of Sobe.
I also talked to someone of a little more importance during my wait. I ran into The Coup’s lead singer, “Boots” Riley, by the t-shirt stand. “Boots” was a short guy, about 5’6 or so, with a big Afro. He was dressed in an athletic jump suit, and looked like he was ready to play basketball. He seemed to be in his mid-20s as well, not much older than me.
While talking to “Boots,” I mentioned that I had seen the Fox News broadcast he appeared on and I thought it was unfair how the hosts had treated him (throughout the broadcast they interrupted him and spoke over him, not allowing him to get in a word). He agreed, telling me he didn’t expect that behavior from the show. Then I told him I was at the show to hear his message, to get his side of the issues. Something Fox News never allowed me to do. So much for Fair and Balanced.
After I drank a couple more Heinekens and flirted some more with the Sobe girl, Kenny Muhammed finally came on. “The Human Beatbox” was pretty good, making an array of boom-bap-boom-ta-boom-bap beats without a DJ. His show got old though, after about 20 minutes I was boom-bapped out.
There was, as expected, a brief intermission before The Coup took the stage. During this time, the Moon played a skateboarding, extreme sport video on movie screens that came down from the roof below the stage. This video was complete with heavy metal music, and was totally out of place during a hip-hop show.
The Coup, a hip-hop band as well, finally took the stage. Tonight they were led by “Boots” and featured a live back up band. Unfortunately, Pam the Funkstress wasn’t “in the house.” “Boots” had another rapper on the stage with him but never took the time to identify him.
The main theme of The Coup in both their logo and their lyrics is that they are socialists. They are very much against “The Man,” who they define as all rich white males. This includes both the government and high-ranking businessmen, the latter of which are targeted in the song “5 Million Ways to Kill a CEO.”
Overall, the Coup put on a very enjoyable show. They reminded me of old Parliament-Funkadelic George Clinton funk updated with socio-political rap lyrics. They put to shame any of the materialistic, girls, cars, and jewelry songs dominating mainstream radio and MTV. Quite possibly the best part of the show wasn’t The Coup, however. It was watching a group of white drunken fraternity brothers with absolutely no rhythm attempt to dance to The Coup’s pro-black, damn-the-rich-white-man songs.
After The Coup’s show was over, I again had a chance to talk to “Boots” Riley. I told him I enjoyed the show, although I didn’t agree with his entire message. I also told him I had bought the group’s CD, which of course now features an album cover unrelated to the World Trade Centers. “Boots” thanked me, shook my hand, and went on his way, probably seeing humor in the fact that his socialist, pro-black message was purchased by a college-educated white kid who has lived in the suburbs his whole life.
