Daily Loaf

So, admittedly, I’ve been slacking in bringing you updates about my week up in D.C., which I promised to do as recently as this past Monday. Been too busy standing around in uncomfortable shoes, I guess. I don’t have great photos from either “An Evening with Jay-Z,” a one-off unofficial celebration show Jay put on at an intimate theater Monday night — no cameras allowed, d’oh! — or from the swearing-in ceremony itself, which turned out to be a total shitshow for our ticketed section. We just barely made it inside the Capitol grounds, and even though could hardly see much except for a video screen (partially obscured by a couple trees to boot).

But Tuesday night, we made it to the Neighborhood Ball, which was televised live on ABC and featured performances by Jay-Z (again), Mariah Carey, Will.i.am, Mary J Blige, etc., and appearances by Diddy, Leonardo Dicaprio, Jamie Foxx, etc. The highlight of the entire night, though, had to be the First Couple, and the First Dance, a romantic twirl to a special live performance of “At Last” by Beyoncé. You can scope tons of photos from Monday and Tuesday here, thanks to my wife, Rachel.

And then, there was last night: a private ball for ex-Obama staffers only, with speeches by the President and Vice President, and hour-long shows from both The Arcade Fire and Jay-Z (again, again). To say this event was sweet would be a drastic understatement.

First off, as opposed to the Tuesday night balls, the OFA (Obama for America) party had one vital element: an open bar. And the gathering was small enough to allow my wife and I to stand right down front for the entirety of the Arcade Fire set. Now, longtime aficionados of The 941 may know that I am absolutely batshit nuts for The Arcade Fire, and that hasn’t changed one bit.

After their righteous set (I’m going to post video of the band covering “Born in the U.S.A.” in full once I get home and have time to upload the file.), the VP’s sister introduced Biden, and then actor Kal Penn introduced genius campaign manager David Plouffe, who then brought out Barack and Michelle.

And then Jay-Z performed. What a fricking night. I’ll save you the superlatives, and just add that last night was the highlight of the trip for this ex-field organizer. I’ll hit ya’ll up with more photos and that video I promised when I get back to the office and my ears quit ringing. I promise. Cheers.

Posted in Arts & Entertainment, Politics | Leave a comment