Rolling with the Peas easier than Stones

from dirtypop.net:

Justin Timberlake plays T.O. club gig
(8/3/03) KAREN BLISS JAM! Music

Justin Timberlake joined the Black Eyed Peas onstage at Revival nightclub in Toronto Thursday night, jamming for about 40-minutes with the hip hop group that's been opening for him and Christina Aguilera on their current arena tour.

The last-minute gig, put on by promoter Jonathan Ramos with just two days notice, was jam packed with die-hard Peas fans. They would have been content with the night as-is, filled with appearances by Toronto artists k-os and host/guest vocalist Esthero, who joined the group on "Weekends," the song she sings on from the LA group's 2000 album, Bridging The Gap.

Undoubtedly, one of the best live bands of any genre, MCs Will-I-Am, Apl-de-AP and Taboo showed off their stellar rhyming skills, acrobatic b-boy moves, crack band and ability to engage a crowd, even inviting audience members up to break dance, stage diving, and performing atop the lengthy bar.

The group - which had opened for Timberlake and Aguilera earlier in the evening at Air Canada Centre, the last of two sold-out shows - took the stage around 12:20 a.m. About an hour later Timberlake, entered the club flanked by his burly body guards.

Wearing camouflage pants, red t-shirt, unbuttoned long sleeve shirt, and ball cap, he stood on the stairs leading onto the stage, watching the tail end of the Peas show with enthusiasm before hopping up to join them on their shared No. 1 hit single, "Where Is The Love?," on which he guests on the new album Elephunk.

Extended to a wicked jam with Timberlake beatboxing for a breathtaking amount of time, he then took a seat behind the keyboards and launched into his latest single, "Senorita," from Justified, and the the familiar notes to "On Broadway," which extended to Will-I-Am's freestyling the substitute lyric "in Toronto."

Timberlake, who dodged water bottles hurled by disrespectful idiots when he opened for the Rolling Stones the previous day (even though those same people embrace the Isley Brothers soul and the Stones' own R&B-flavored oldies), certainly got the love from the hip hop crowd.

As Esthero pointed out at the end of the night, "This is history."

"He could have got a half a million dollars for this - this is love," Will-I-Am said of Timberlake. "This @#%$ is really from the heart," he said pointing to JT. "Thank you for sharing the love." The mutual admiration continued as Timberlake gave props to the Peas. "Every day when you wake up, say to yourself, 'Where is the love?' and remember this night. This is love."

But just when it seemed the night was over (2:25 a.m.), Timberlake took the mic to deliver more love to the Peas. "There's not a lot of bands doing it this way," he said. "This is hip hop. You don't have to listen to your favorite song on a turntable anymore. It gonna be interesting where we all take it. It's an honour to be playing with the Black Eyed Peas."