Written by: Carla Wright
Photos by: Carla Wright
I have never heard N.E.R.D before. When I told some friends of mine that I was shooting the show, I kept hearing "Man, you are so lucky! Let me know if they play 'Everyone nose'". I starred at many of them with a blank stare. I nodded at many of them and smiled, because I was embarrassed to say "Yes, I am shooting a show and writing the review about a band that I've never heard before". Then, it dawned on me that I better tell my friends that I couldn't identify a N.E.R.D. song if it slapped me in the face.
So, my friends took it upon themselves to try and sing a few of the songs to me to see if maybe I've heard them and didn't realize who it was. I mainly laughed at the their futile (but still appreciated) attempt to introduce me to N.E.R.D.
I left for the Fillmore and picked up my friend Frank along the way to take him with me; thankfully he brought N.E.R.D's album, "Seeing Sounds".
ON the drive down I asked Frank what some of the more popular songs were and he put on "Everyone Nose", "You know what", and "Kill Joy".
Satisfied that I could identify a few songs now by N.E.R.D, we arrives at the Fillmore in Miami and I hoped for the best.
I always get nervous before I shoot a show, especially a show (or a band for that matter) that I barely know anything about. So I took a deep breathe and walked with Frank into the Fillmore.
After some confusion (and unfortunately missing Common) I received my press credential and was told the band was going on any second. I shoved the credential in my lanyard and ran with my camera down to the floor. N.E.R.D. was just starting.
On the floor were people dancing, drinking and just having a great time. The lighting for the show was spectacular and the best was yet to come.
I'm five foot and ½ an inch (as I like to emphasize that I'm a smidgen taller than just five foot) so shooting from the floor above the crowd proved to be difficult. If there was any type of media pit, I figured it wouldn't do me any good since there was about four rows of people and chairs standing in my way between me and the stage. So I looked around to see if there was a higher point in the venue that I could shoot from. As I looked around, I thought people had started to rush the stage. So I waited. It wasn't that people were rushing the stage as Pharell Williams was pulling people on stage. He was walking back and forth on stage looking out into the crowd and pointing people out to come on stage with him.
Never, in my entire life, have I ever seen so many people on stage at once as I did that night. He just kept pulling more and more people on stage.
So I walked around and climbed on the outer part of the stage, since it put my line of vision above everyone else. Besides the people who were on stage, I can vouch that I had one of the best "seats" in the house.
After the initial "First wave" of people who were brought on stage, N.E.R.D. took a slight break for a quick drum solo before Pharrell started to address the crowd about Obama and voting. The audience started making an "O" with their hands and chanting Obama's name. It was refreshing to see a crowd of people taking a political stance for what they believed in.
The show continued and Pharrell started asking for ladies to come on stage. Some were pointed out, some were physically pulled on stage, and a few just walked on. I was amazed that there was hardly any security. I put my camera down while people were being pulled on stage and looked up to find Pharrell looking in my direction. So I brought my camera back up and started to shoot. I realized after a few shots, that Pharrell was pointing at me. I put my camera down, smiled, and shook my head "No." I turned around and saw a girl standing behind me and I shouted to her "Hey, he wants you to go on stage". I've never seen someone's face light up so quickly. She started screaming and said "Really? Me?" So, a security guard came and escorted her on stage.
After he lined up the women that were "picked", N.E.R.D. went right into "Everyone Nose".
I wouldn't call all the people on stage, a scene of chaos as I would say, it was like watching a massive party happen in front of you.
Miami lived up to it's name.
After seeing the show, I was awe struck. My personal taste of music is far from N.E.R.D., but after the show they put on at the Fillmore, I told Frank on the car ride back to Ft. Lauderdale, "That was the best show of the year from a band that I've never seen (or heard) before".
