Concert Review: Flatbush Zombies Are The Kings of Soft Power At Terminal 5

In politics, there is a thing called “soft power”. It is, basically, an instagram policy for diplomacy, or rather an idealistic idea that benevolent actions and images will inspire people to follow you in being “better”. Watching Flatbush Zombies tear up the Terminal 5 stage, I realized the power of “soft power” as I saw them rap to systemic oppressions while they pulsed images of cool.

Not many people can rap “Rest In Peace, Trayvon” two bars before they happily declare “I just got a blowjob.” It was a “political” statement matched with a “giddy” one, but connected by their overall, colorful view of self-empowerment. When you are saying to love someone, especially if they are in need, you are not just making a moral statement; you are also making a political one. Hence, their repeated requests from the audience to cheer “I love myself” as if Jesus had come down to declare loving yourself was the beginning of having fun with thy neighbor. Seeing how and who we love be divided by party lines, Flatbush Zombies have  charged their political rhetoric/ views over a style that feels like a comic-book come to life.
FLATBUSH ZOMBiES – VACATION (The-Movie)

With a set that looked like a cartooned cemetery, Meechy Darko, Zombie Juice, Erick The Architect felt like the Marvel version of rap. All they needed were colorful signs that said, “Whoosh” or “Kablam”, and they would have looked like a Batman edition come to life. Yet, their vigilante dynamic played well in their ability to veil messages of mindfulness and charity over themes of sex, weed, and partying; three things that could be smelled throughout the air. From the minute, you enter a Flatbush Zombies’ concert you will see people sweating, laughing, and lighting up as if invincibility were the foundation of songs like, “Best American”, “Hell-O”, and “Big Shrimp”.
FLATBUSH ZOMBiES – ‘HEADSTONE’

Celebrating their newest record, Vacation In Hell, Flatbush Zombies were one of the most delightfully strange and thoughtful concerts I have seen. Only there could I be asked by a random, shoeless stranger, “Have you seen my shoes?”, and proceed to see one white man stop another white man from using the “n-word” by saying “Respect the black community!” Their show was a ripe blend of splashiness and “wokeness” displaying you will get called out for having archaic notions of race and class because progressivism is also an aesthetic; it is acts like Flatbush Zombies. Everything they did, even take off their shirts, was emulated by the crowd, who thought them coolly virtuous and the epitome of fun, which is the point of soft power; to make you a political influencer. They truly were the only group I have ever seen to do a speech on compassion and then proceed to begin a mosh-pit after declaring their potential, presidential candidacy. #thisisAmerica For More Information On Flatbush Zombies Click Here.
Flatbush Zombies – Palm Trees Music Video (Prod. By The Architect)