D12: ‘20th Anniversary Tour’
Originally covered on behalf of The Bristol Gig GuideDate: 9th December 2023
Venue: SWX, Bristol
After first seeing D12 support Snoop Dogg in March 2023 and again supporting Ice Cube in December 2023, I finally got to experience the full set from beginning to end as I joined D12, DJ Invisible, Nasaan and Jake Bass on their Bristol show for D12’s 20th Anniversary Tour.
I was lucky enough to hang out before and after the show with the iconic group and, being a fan of Eminem and D12 from a young age, this was a full circle moment for myself.
Prior to the show commencing, I was able to witness some fans having VIP meet and greets with D12 members Kuniva and McVay. Hearing the stories of how their music impacted the fans was very inspiring, and one fan in particular showed them her tattoo of Eminem and asked the duo to sign their signatures on her leg which she would later get tattooed along with the D12 logo.
DJ Invisible fantastically kicked off the show, energising the crowd for an epic night to come. I’ve had the pleasure of seeing Carl spin on two previous occasions and it’s very entertaining to experience every time. To a sold out crowd at Bristol’s SWX, Kuniva and McVay, accompanied by Nasaan (son of the late rapper Proof), performed a giant setlist of over 20 songs. The list included some of my personal favourites “My Band”, “Fight Music”, “Purple Pills”, “Shit on You”, as well a memorable performance of Eminem’s hit “Lose Yourself”, which I found out on the evening was co-produced by Jeff Bass, the father of D12’s tour guitarist Jake Bass. My mind was blown when I found this out, as I was in the company of someone whose parent had a major hand in creating one of my most favourite songs.
Even after 20 years, D12’s music is still remarkably relevant today and selling out crowds across the pond is not something which many artists or bands can achieve. Undoubtedly, D12 are a staple in the history of Hip-Hop music and it was an absolute honour to accompany them on stage, and behind the scenes, as I shot the show and witnessed them further solidify their status as rap legends.
