Woo-hah! Busta Rhymes certainly had Dartmouth College in check last night as he brought his free-spirited, original hip-hop tunes to Leede Arena.
Following his 1999 performance at the College, Rhymes returned with both old school hits and some new beats from his latest album, "Genesis."
With his new record featuring big stars like Mary J. Blige, P. Diddy and Rah Digga, Busta claims that his personal musical influences include everyone from Sugarhill Gang, L.L. Cool J and Run DMC.
Recently, Rhymes has transplanted his larger-than-life persona to the big screen with roles in hit films including "Finding Forrester," "Shaft" and this year's yet-to-be-released "Halloween: The Homecoming" and "Narc."
"Whatever I'm getting the opportunity to be blessed to do, whatever pretty much falls out of the sky on my plate, whatever it is," Rhymes told The Dartmouth. "If I find myself being comfortable in that element, I'm gonna run with it."
Rhymes claimed that he is "looking to pursue a little bit more of everything," but added, "music is my first love."
This musical passion is particularly evident on stage. "I just love to perform, that's it," Rhymes said. "The appreciation is out there, you know. I come back to wherever I'm wanted."
Rhymes expressed appreciation for his devoted college audience. "Most of the core element of hip-hop support is big schools," Rhymes said, "the young minds, the fresh minds, the open minds people that can really appreciate the shit you doing."
"It's always a good vibe when you can feel the desire from the masses," he added.
Rhymes and the Flipmode Squad performed mostly new songs from "Genesis," but also included a few surprises.
He included his recent hits "Pass the Courvoisier" -- which features P.Diddy on his album -- "Genesis" and "Holla."
Rhymes shined with popular hits like "Gimme Some More" and "Dangerous" and took the crowd back to the old-school with A Tribe Called Quest's hit "Scenerio."
With rapper Spliff-Star by his side, Rhymes' energy was incredible. He fed off the excitement of the crowd and spoke to the audience sporadically throughout the show.
Before the show even began, Rhymes' voice set the rules straight for everyone. "Rule number one: Busta Rhymes is your name and breaking motherf--ers down is your game."
He even stopped midway through "Everybody Rise Again" to make sure that the audience in the back was standing up, instructing everyone sitting in the bleachers to get out of their seats and give him the respect he deserved.
And they obeyed -- everyone, that is, except for a man who refused to stand up until Spiff Star dragged him out of his seat as Rhymes yelled, "Get the f-- up, homeboy!"
Sporting a casual white t-shirt and jeans, Rhymes' energy never faded throughout the show and the intensity with which he performed was contagious.
Spliff Star and Rhymes played off of each other nicely, taking humor and hip-hop to a whole new level as only Busta Rhymes can do.
At one point, Spliff Star gave Rhymes a bottle of water, claiming that it was a special potion that would make him rhyme better. After taking a sip from the bottle, Rhymes began rhyming so fast that it was almost impossible to decipher his words.
Busta topped off the show with his new hit single "Break Ya Neck" and wished the New Hampshire crowd a happy New Year.
Though Busta's new album may end with some "Bad Dreams," all who witnessed the rapper in Hanover had Busta's famous ear-to-ear grin and radiant energy on their minds as they slept last night.
