Say what you will about the Microsoft Zune but the folks behind the player certainly know how to throw a party for the community.

I just got home a little under two hours ago from the first “Live At The BBQ” concert presented by the Microsoft Zune team. The concert was held here in Los Angeles at the Los Angeles State Historic Park in downtown LA. Microsoft plans on holding two more concerts - one in Chicago on July 22nd and one in New York on August 4th.

Before I get into today’s concert, I’d like to briefly talk about what the “Live At The BBQ” concert series is all about. The goal for “Live At The BBQ” is to basically bring music back to the community - make it possible for everyone out there to enjoy some of the latest Hip-Hop sounds live in an open arena. It was also a way for the Zune team to say “Thank you to the community for all of their support” by giving something back to the community in the form of the hottest music out there.  And yes of course - it’s also a great way to promote the Zune brand too.

Now back to today’s concert. Registration for the Los Angeles concert began on Friday via the website here and folks who got tickets were notified via email on July 10th. The location and time was very hush hush up until the actual email notifications went out on the 10th. To the surprise of many individuals out there, the “Live At The BBQ” concert was set to begin at 2pm on the 12th. Most of my friends that wanted to go to this concert couldn’t make it simply because they had to go to work today. That was perhaps the one downside to this concert in terms of timing. On the other hand, starting it at 2pm made sense once you realized how many artists were going to be on hand for the concert.

I was lucky enough to get off of work early today and I promptly headed down to the Los Angeles State Historic Park (Honestly this was the first time I’ve ever heard of the park!). After a 35 minute drive on the 10 and 110, I got to the park at around 2:45 pm; received my media press badge, and checked out the venue.

Here’s what the entrance looked like from the inside:

Here’s a shot of the venue as you walk in:

There were plenty of officers from the Los Angeles Police Department on hand for security.

In typical Microsoft fashion, there were also plenty of things to do at the park aside from listening to Hip-Hop. Microsoft set up an air-conditioned tent filled with Zune stations (each station had three Zunes coupled with Skullcandy headphones) and Xbox 360 game console stations.

The Xbox 360 stations were certainly a sight to behold. Each station was actually a BBQ grill retrofitted with a large VIZIO LCD monitor. Hooked up to the LCD monitor was an Xbox 360 and two controllers. The Xbox 360 consoles were littered around the tent with the Zune stations in the center. Hey - Microsoft - here’s an idea - auction off those grill sets for charity!

Outside of the tent, there was a car outfitted with an Xbox 360 and a Microsoft Zune media player blasting music out in the open.

Further down from the tent, there were several basketball contests going on where supposedly winners of the contest would get a free Microsoft Zune media player (I didn’t actually get confirmation of this from any of the staff but I overheard it from one of the bystanders).

Other attractions included:

Food:

First Aid tents:

The good ol hot dog stand:

Off to the right side of the main stage was a large screen on top of an even larger trailer:

Finally, you had the main stage itself:

Media and VIP badge holders got an opportunity to go backstage which basically meant going behind a large fence.

Behind the fence you found all the artists, promoters, press corps, Microsoft personnel, security, food, drinks.. you name it.

Speaking of food.. it was awesome folks. It really was a BBQ! Yum. Here are some pictures of the food being cooked over on the VIP side:

Yes - that’s real food inside and not an Xbox 360 console like in the other tent!

Here was the tent for the drinks (I do believe the bartender made a killing today)

The folks from Red Bull were also on hand to help out with the event:

I got to spend a little bit of time with Cesar from ZuneInsider as he gave me a quick tour of the venue. Many thanks to Cesar for all the hard work he’s done with the Zune team and in promoting the media player!

 Now onto the most important part of the event - the Live MUSIC!  The original artist lineup and set times were as follows:

• DJ Reflex (2-3pm)
• DJ Mr Choc/C-Minus (3-3:30pm)
• Collie Buddz (3:30-4pm)
• Change over to act 2 DJ Mr Choc/C-Minus (4-4:15pm)
• E-40 (4:15-4:45pm)
• Change over to act 3 DJ Mr Choc/C-Minus (4:45-5pm)
• David Banner (5-5:30pm)
• Change over to act 4 DJ Mr Choc/C-Minus (5:30-5:45pm)
• UGK (5:45-6:30pm)
• Change over to act 5 DJ Mr Choc/C-Minus (6:30-6:45pm)
• To Be Determined (6:45-7:30pm)
• Change over to act 6 DJ Mr Choc/C-Minus (7:30-8pm)
• Common (8-8:45pm)
• Show ends at 9pm

The actual lineup changed slightly as the “To Be Determined” spot was eventually removed.

Since I got there at around 3pm, I missed the opening rounds of music spun by DJ Reflex but I did manage to catch the opening by Collie Buddz at 3:30pm. Here are pictures of the act:

After Collie Buddz finished up, there was supposed to be a short 15 minute break before E-40 took the stage. Unfortunately, E-40 was apparently stuck in traffic (figures.. it is LA you know) so the concert was delayed approximately 30-40 minutes.  Here are a couple of pictures of the right side of the stage:

Here’s the state of the crowd - not bad at all.

DJ Mr Choc/C-Minus spinning up some music..

More shots of the crowd:

E-40 did finally make it to the stage and here are pictures from their act.

Following E-40’s act was David Banner and man - he was a treat to watch. You’ll see the performances soon enough as I get them ready for YouTube and of course here on ZuneSphere. In the meantime, enjoy the snapshots. (BTW - the videos aren’t exactly PG rated either)

UGK took the stage after David Banner finished up and here are those pics.

Before Common took the stage, the Zune team gave out some free Zune media players to folks who could answer some simple hip hop trivia questions. Here’s one of the winners:

Finally at around 8pm, Common took to the stage and really delivered an incredible performance. He sang some of music (again - you’ll see the videos shortly), did a little freestyle, and sang some old Hip-Hop tunes from the past. The crowd really got jazzed up during Common’s act.

Shots of the crowd during the Common final act:

Through most of the concert, the media was allowed to film the first two songs of each act - except for Common’s act. We managed to sneak in some video footage anyhow.

So you’re probably wondering - how many people showed up. Honestly, I’m not sure. The Zune team was expecting between 4000 to 5000 registered individuals at the concert. To me - it felt more like 2000 or so.. (if even?) I honestly couldn’t tell but at the same time, I didn’t mind that it wasn’t a fully packed house. Everyone who attended the concert managed to get up close and personal with the artists. It really was a community of music lovers coming out to enjoy some quality free hip-hop music.  And from my lone perspective, the folks who attended the concert looked like they had a great deal of fun - what more can you ask for right?

Finally, I’d like to give a big “shout out” to Cesar from ZuneInsider, to the entire Microsoft Zune team, to the folks who helped prepare and run this concert, to the Los Angeles Police Department, to all the artists that performed today, and most importantly - to all the folks that came out to enjoy this day in the sun - this “Live At The BBQ” event. It was a real blast and I hope the Zune team visits Los Angeles again!!

If you’re living in Chicago and New York City, prepare for one awesome event and make sure you register early!

Stay tuned this weekend for videos from the concert. It’s going to take me some time to get them ready for online consumption.

Technorati Tags: Microsoft Zune, Zune Presents, Live At The BBQ, DJ Mr. Choc, C-Minus, Collie Buddz, E-40, David Banner, UGK, Common, Microsoft, Los Angeles State Historic Park