Sunset Strip Music Festival Skeets Off at The Roxy

As you can see, DJ Skee, Skee TV and all their guests (Xzibit, Paul Wall, Strong Arm Steady) seriously threw it down to start off the amazing weekend that is the Sunset Strip Music Festival.

The Roxy played host to the star studded event that was the third installment of Skeetox and there were a handsome lot of notable characters in the audience. Surprisingly, the room was not at capacity despite the twitter publicized announcement that both Xzibit and Paul Wall would be there. But, hey, that made for a way more comfortable environment.

Enjoying the choice crowd, I mingled for a while before Skee and his band took to the stage. Once there, Skee's band brought a nice selection of recent and old hip-hop hits to the party and added their own live flavor to the DJ set. Although not The Roots, this live hip-hop medley band is fun to watch and very energized on stage. Playing a host of familiar music, it was really easy to enjoy their performance. They had me questioning why I don't go (or possibly form) a hip-hop cover band....

After DJ Skee and his band finished riffling through chart toppers of yesterday, Strong Arm Steady were the first guests to grab the mic and massage the crowd. Playing in familiar stomping grounds, SAS delivered a quick dosage of their L.A. flavor before handing the microphones over to more accomplished MCs.

After Strong Arm Steady, Paul Wall came to the stage with his quintessential iced grill and painted arms. Starting late, perhaps because he had drove slow, Wall reminded the crowd why his Southern drawl and swagger can still rock a room, leaving the crowd pining for more.

Wall, although a veteran, is not as senior as Xzibit. Long before Wall's "Ride Slow" or his own TV show Pimp My Ride, X was killing the West Coast with his poetic flow on tracks like "Foundation" and "Papparazzi." No longer really acclaimed for his MC abilities (he does more acting and voice overs; his last album release was in 2006), Xzibit exhibited why he still deserves credit amongst his rapper brethren. He was energetic, enthusiastic and passionate on the stage. You could feel the energy rise when the took the mic and you were itching for more when he finished his performance.

Thanks to The Roxy and DJ Skee for making it happen. It was dope. We can only hope that the rest of Sunset Strip Music Festival week and weekend is this good.