The concert by the rapper-producer duo OG Keemo and funk father Frank in Berlin on April 19 was a milestone in their career. The two were joined by support acts Ramzey, Gianni Suave and Souly. We were there.
The queue in front of Berlin’s Columbiahalle stretched several hundred meters along Columbiadamm on Wednesday (April 19). Over 3,000 OG Keemo fans waited to be admitted in the pouring rain. That evening, the Mannheim rapper would give the biggest solo concert of his career to date with his best friend and producer Funkvater Frank.
OG Keemo brought surprise guests to Berlin
Support act Ramzey opened the show with his producer Yaze. The Frankfurters brought a lot of energy right from the start: Thundering 808s and clever rhymes removed any doubt that the full Columbiahalle would experience a successful concert evening. One after the other, the guest acts Gianni Suave and Souly came onto the stage. The three artist friends have already featured each other in the past and performed a selection of their joint productions. Ramzey, Gianni Suave and Souly complemented each other fantastically – both in terms of song selection and stage presence.
After a short conversion period, the time had come: the lights were turned off, the sound of a heartbeat came from the speakers. Funk father Frank was the first to enter the stage and fired off the beat to “Malik”. Shortly thereafter, the crowd finally welcomed the much-anticipated OG Keemo.
“Franky” and “Keemo” played the best of their discography
The two jumped right through their discography as the evening progressed. Tracks from the current album MANN BISST HUND (2022) – such as “Civic”, “Big Boy” or the aforementioned entry “Malik” – were also included, as was “Kaftan”, a track from the Soundcloud days before the record deal chimperator. In addition to the new single “Fever”, which Keemo released on May 23, the rapper-producer duo teased a new song, of which they shared a snippet. “That’s it, that’s all we have,” announced Franky, as his fans and friends call him, after a verse of the unnamed track. It is not yet known when the song will be heard in full. The new EP FEVER is in any case announced for the last quarter of 2023.
Ramzey and Gianni Suave also found their way onto the stage again: Ramzey as a Kwam.E replacement for the track “Blanko”, Gianni for his feature on the song “Ziller”.
Before the show ended with fan-favorites Geist, Vorwort and Faust, OG Keemo, whose real name is Karim Joel Martin, addressed the audience with a few words. It was “not a matter of course” that so many would show up for this concert. That means a lot to the two, said Keemo before the final.
OG Keemo showed German rappers how to do it
Our impression: “Keemo Sabe” presented a lesson in live rap performance that Wednesday evening. In Germany there are only a few of the new generation of hip-hop artists who deliver on stage like the man from Mannheim. Without playback. As precise and clear as in the studio. With an energy on the stage that captivates everyone. While he likes to claim otherwise on his tracks, you can tell that OG Keemo puts his heart and soul into his rap career. “I feel like rapping,” he said, not surprisingly, during his set.
Franky’s contribution to the duo’s success should also not go unmentioned. The dark beats, in which the producer mixes classic hip-hop elements with modern trap drums and 808 bass, perfectly complement OG Keemo’s microphone skills – even live on stage. The concert by OG Keemo and Funk father Frank in Berlin’s Columbiahalle on April 19, 2023 was nothing less than a milestone in their career.