Paycor Stadium | Cincinnati OH
Electric Night...and not in a good way! đ˘
Let me set the scene. Cincinnati Music Festival. Day 2 of the main weekend event. One of the cityâs biggest night of music. And I was ready. I mean, heat-wave-sticky-sweaty kind of ready. The type of heat where your edges throw in the towel before you even leave the car. But it didnât matterâI came to see one man, and one man only: LL Cool J. Period.
The day started off unusually smooth. Travel? Left home early..Easy. Traffic? a few hiccups, but manageable, no repeat of last year’s chaos. Parking? Found a spot without a single prayer to the parking gods near the exit. That alone felt like a cosmic setup. A little too easy, if you know what I mean.
Now, I wonât take away from the rest of the lineupâthey all clocked in and did their jobs. I must add, the sound was ‘off’…just not hittin quite right! But you deal with it. đ¤ˇđ˝ââď¸ Back to the line-up. The Bar-Kays? Cool. 112? Still got it, but no real spark for me. Lucky Daye? Eh. Maybe I missed something, but I wasnât moved. Toni Braxton, though? Baby! She saved the night and ended with an encore that reminded us why sheâs legendary. Then came my momentâthe reason I dealt with this humidity, the traffic, the sweat stuck to my lower back..
LL. COOL. J.
Looking good. Sounding even better. He had just warmed us up with two songs, about to roll into the third, and then…
âWe have to stop.â
Wait… what?
Apparently, a storm was headed our way. An actual, real storm. Lightning, thunder, potential danger. The venue announced we had to leave the open area and head inside the stadium for safety. We had two choices: wait it out inside and risk a very late night… or leave. But if we left? No reentry.
Cue the heartbreak. After a quick decision-making moment with my concert bestie (shoutout to her for always being down!), we chose to leave. We had an hour drive ahead and didnât want to get stuck in post-storm traffic…or soaked.
But yâall, hereâs the twist.
I’m watching social media for updates on the situation…for the longest time…people were still waiting, or had left. Then about 40 minutes after we were back on the highway, social media lit up. The party was back on! The show resumed! People were heading back to their seats. And then the dagger to the heart: LL CAME BACK. He finished his set. And he brought out Rev Run from Run-D.M.C. They apparently tore it down.
Listen. I was genuinely happy for everyone who got to witness that magic. But let me be honestâI was sick. I came for LL. I endured the heat, the sweat, the iffy sound system, and that chaotic lineup reshuffle (yes, I noticed how the Frankie Beverly Tribute quietly slid into the headliner spot). And still… I left without my full LL moment.
It just wasnât our night. Not this time.
Still… shoutout to Cincinnati for hosting a festival that brings out legends. And shoutout to me and my bestie for trying to do grown-woman things like âmake the responsible decision.â
That LL x Rev Run set will haunt me for a long time.
