“I thank you so much for all the support and purchases over the years. It’s moments like this that make it all worth it. This is the best you will ever get, and I’m not saying that in an arrogant way, I’m saying that in a factual way.” -Kanye West (Revel Concert 7/6/12)
Last night (July 6), Kanye West touched down in Atlantic City, New Jersey for the first of a two-day stint at the brand new Revel Casino and Resort that is rumored to be earning Kanye over $3 million for both performances. It would more than appear looking back that Yeezy was worth every penny as was the money spent on the tickets to see him.
As echoes of “H.A.M.” played in the background and 19 dancers made their way across the stage, Kanye literally rose from the middle of the crowd and passed over the audience on a floating riser as he began what he dubbed “Act 1” of his two hour set, with the “Higher” from his Grammy Award-winning album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.
Next, Yeezy made his way to the stage and performed back to back hits in the form of “Power,” “Way Too Cold“, his verse from “New God Flow”, and “Jesus Walks”. Then, on “Can’t Tell Me Nothin”, he stopped halfway through because, as Kanye stated, “This is like my favorite song I’ve made for anybody who has ever felt this way.”
As horoscope signs flashed on the stage and lasers beamed into the audience, Kanye got into “Diamonds”, “Hell of A Life”, and “Monster”, before taking a short break to let the drums of Phil Collins’ “In the Air Tonight” bang throughout Revel’s Ovation Hall. As “Act 1” began to close, Kanye broke out “Flashing Lights”, Michael Jackson’s “P.Y.T.”, and “Good Life.”
A little over an hour into the show, “Act 2” began with a string of records from his 808’s and Heartbreak album, such as “Love Lockdown”, “Say You Will”, “Heartless”, and “Pinocchio Story.” Despite the more mellow ambiance that the songs created, Kanye wasn’t going to let everyone’s energy die down, as immediately following “Pinocchio,” the infectious chorus by Rihanna from “Run This Town” blared through the speakers followed by the G.O.O.D. Music mogul’s current platinum-selling hit “Mercy.”
As Queen’s “We Will Rock You” played in the background, Kanye stopped the music so he could run a previous track back now that he “had his energy up.” “Way Too Cold” played for a second time that night, followed by “Homecoming”, “Through the Wire”, “All Falls Down”, and “Touch the Sky.”
Kanye then declared, “There is no one better, but as a human being I am flawed. By the way, we’re just about to start the show.” “All of the Lights” was up next, which he then stopped to announce “this is the one song that everyone can say ‘our n*gga dead’,” regarding Michael Jackson.
He then explained that the entire track originally starting with just a few horns in Hawaii, followed by intense writer’s block when it came to coming up with the chorus. Yeezy thanked The-Dream for coming up with the now well-known chorus, as well as Rihanna for singing it the way it’s heard now.
The whole performance was capped off with a 15-minute long rendition of “Lost In the World”, followed by Kanye thanking for the crowd for their “warm embrace,” and then one of Kanye’s most personal records was performed, “Hey Mama.” One night down, Kanye, one to go.
Check out Kanye’s set-list from his first Revel performance below:
ACT 1
- Higher
- Power
- Way Too Cold
- New God Flow
- Jesus Walks
- Can’t Tell Me Nothin
- Diamonds
- Hell Of A Life
- Monster
- (In the Air Tonight)
- Flashing Lights
- (P.Y.T.)
- Good Life
ACT 2
- Love Lockdown
- Say You Will
- Heartless
- Pinocchio Story
- Run This Town
- Mercy
- Way Too Cold
- (We Will Rock You)
- Homecoming
- Through the Wire
- All Falls Down
- Touch the Sky
- Gold Digger
- All of the lights
- Stronger
- Runaway w/ Pusha T
- Lost in the World
- Hey Mama
Image and videos by The Focus Camp
