Downtown-type promoters love booking 2 Live Crew. (It hasn't been too long since they played the Vagabond, and there were those shows at the old Studio A before that.) This always creates a magical mash-up of a crowd that falls along a very, very wide irony spectrum. The thing is, no matter what kind of stupid outfits people may wear to a 2 Live Crew show downtown, or how openly they express their enthusiasm, underneath it all pretty much everyone loves the Crew. While other people grew up on a childhood memories full of some kind of sugary pop music, if you grew up in Miami, your childhood memories are full of cousins' backyard parties with a rental DJ playing "Pop That Coochie."
The latter-day incarnation of 2 Live Crew doesn't include Luther Campbell -- in fact, he has taken pains to distance himself from it. These days it's helmed by founding member Chris Wongwon, a.k.a. Fresh Kid Ice, a.k.a. Chinaman. (Campbell, or Uncle Luke, was added to the group relatively late in its history. Fresh Kid Ice set the record straight in the New Times last year; click here to read that story.)
The November 20 gig at White Room is presented by Notorious Nastie and IAmYourVillain's Joel Meinholz. The opening act is the new girl-girl bass group Basside, and between-act DJ sets come fro Otto von Schirach, Debbie D, Chris Video, and Dr. Feathers. One can only imagine the kinds of confusion that will arise among the audience's various factions; this is all the more reason to attend.
2 Live Crew. Friday, November 20. White Room, 1306 N. Miami Ave., Miami. Doors open at 10 p.m. Girls are in free before midnight; otherwise admission is $10. Ages 21+ with ID. 305-995-5050; whiteroomshows.com
