EMERGENCE

The Village Voice offers a review of Invincible's performance at the High Water Music CMJ '09 Showcase.

Excerpt:

...the mic was passed on to Waajeed (of Platinum Pied Pipers) as he took over the turntables to introduce the next act. "Real hip-hop is a rare motherfucking thing," he announced as Invincible took the stage. "And we're here to bring you some real hip-hop." Those who'd been standing on the outskirts chatting--and those who'd wandered over from the back room--swarmed in as the small-framed rapper opened with the gritty "State of Emergency," which also leads off her Shapeshifters album.

What she lacked in stature she made up for in confidence, engaging the audience ("Everybody move your hands like this--just do it, believe me") and actually succeeding this time. Each new song came with a fresh routine for the audience: "Now make your fingers in the shape of an L," she yelled, doffing her page-boy peacoat during an energetic "No Easy Answers." Her enthusiasm only waned for a moment as she somberly spoke on the state of her hometown in "these times," before ending with the thoughtful "Keep Goin'" alongside an even smaller rapper named At Last, who earnestly chanted along with the chorus: "I keep going/Even when I want to stop."

Invincible clearly stole the show--most of the audience left as she did. Lucky for you, she'll be back at Public Assembly on Thursday for the Homeland Hip-Hop show. I can't speak for the rest of the lineup, but she's worth the $12 alone.

Read the full article at The Village Voice.

The New York Times also made mention of Invincible's performance in its article on the rising presence of Hip-Hop at the CMJ Music Marathon. Read the article at NYTimes.com.