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If you were in Atlanta but weren’t @ The Five Spot last night for Perfect Attendance, you missed out on a good start to what’s going to be a great weekend. Since I’m still groggy (yes, even in the afternoon my ears still feel clogged like I went swimming), I’ll keep the words short. Don’t worry, more pics, footage and words to come.

– I’m surprised there’s any updates on other sites because every “internet artist” you can think of was either @ The Five or nearby. I don’t mean that as a negative thing because the purpose of events like these is to expose those not in the know about who’s next.

– The crowd was a typical Bell Curve in terms of numbers but energy remained @ peak levels from start to stop. Four kids in the front (who’ll you’ll probably see in every forthcoming pic & video clip) were “those dudes” — literally rapping to every track, bouncing up and down, the whole nine — keeping the energy live. Overall, a Thursday night crowd with Saturday night energy that was surprisingly supplemented by artists who were enthusiastic about performing.

– Of the acts, the “damn, he ripped it” awards have to go out to hometown favorite P-I-double L and crowd motivators Tanya Morgan, who even incorporated a few dance steps into their stage show. Gotta make sure to mention the Reservoir Dogs of HOJ — Scudda, Pooh, Jozeemo & Chaundon — who took the stage in matching Motown blazers and white shirts inspired by the namesake movie and proceeding to run through a rousing number of selections.

donny-goines

But the top dog? Donny Goines. The energy that the man I call “On The Grind” projected was crazy. You know the chicks that come to the party, like Hip-Hop but aren’t gonna really exert themselves by even throwing their hands in the air? Yeah, Donny had them going and never missed a beat while stumbling, tripping & recovering. Words won’t suffice, even video may not. Catch Donny live if he ever hits your city.

– Atlanta has the most bizarre group of homeless people I’ve ever met. By their garb, they were initially kind of hard to differentiate from the hipsters. Until they started talking, then you knew they were not residents of the universe.

pill

– Rappers wearing hot outfits, literally. Sweatshirts, cardigans & jackets on stage have to be hella hot, that’s all I’m saying about that. Not cool. What was cool was watching Scudda & Pill sip from tall cans while performing.

– I’ve met a whole lot of artists but by far the most genuine has to be the aforementioned Pill. I first met him last March in Austin & he was humble, quiet but a general conversationalist. Then, I only knew cat as “Killer’s homeboy with the mixtape” so we killed time, burned a few cigs & chopped it up. After a few minutes, he asked if I needed a drink or anything. Fast forward to October 2009 and his name buzzin, we spoke outside the spot about how his path has changed as his career options increased. We broke the huddle and, a few minutes later, he yelled from inside to see if I needed anything to drink. That’s one thing raps been missing — character.

– Tonite’s performance should not be a letdown, at least not by judging the names on the flyer. Mikkey, Rockwell and Yelawolf are enough for me. Curren$y too as well as Naledge & Double-O? Pssh. You better be bringin’ your triflin’ ass out the house & come hang with us.