Watch The Throne Tour Makes D.C. A Stop on National Tour

As the clock struck 8:53pm, all the lights in the Verizon Center shut off. A figure began to walk on to the main stage. The melodic voice of Otis Redding began to pour out the loud speakers. The spotlight revealed rapper Kanye West as he opened the show performing "H.A.M,"   the first single from Watch the Throne album.

To the audience surprise, Jay Z appeared on a smaller stage opposite of the main stage, rapping his verses in the song. As the duo continued to perform "HAM" the stages rouse 40 feet into the air. Images of sharks swimming in a tank surrounded the stage.

 Jay Z then joined Kanye West as the America Flag lowered behind them and together they performed "Otis."

Thursday, November 3, people filled the Verizon Center located in Washington D.C. for one of  the most talked about tours in the U.S.--- Kanye West and Jay Z's Watch the Throne concert.

Ryan King, a courtesy clerk at Safeway grocery store, attended the event with his relative. "I thought it was nice. I liked all the songs. I was standing the whole time"

 Jelani Fenton, a junior economics major at the University of Maryland, attended the event with a group of his friends. As a fan of both rappers, Fenton stated, "The performance was electric. I loved every second of it"

"I will be very surprised if I have my voice tomorrow. I was screaming the whole time," he said.

The concert was full of artistic illustrations. It included visual illusions of barking dogs, flying doves, and other animalistic images. On the large concert screens, located behind the rappers, images of Hurricane Katrina's aftermath, the Ku Klux Klan, and shots of civil rights leaders Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X were displayed.

TeAndre Martin, a freshman economics major at Howard University, did not know he would attend the Watch the Throne performance until his brother surprised him with tickets that Thursday morning.

He felt the performance was creative and abstract. "I don't think there was anything else like it"

Martin also stated, "I didn't think it would be like that. It was more than what I expected it to be. I had no idea they would have videos playing throughout their performance."

The show which began an hour and a half late had the crowd out of their seats throughout the two and a half hour performance.

Joanne Hall, senior public relations major at Howard University, admitted that she was so excited that at one point she was standing on her chair until a security guard told her to get down.

She attended the event with two friends and had floor seats. Overall she was impressed with the show.

 "There was a lot of controversial talks about their album" however, Joanne states "They lived up to their mission and they exceed their expectations every time they get together."

There were no headliners for the show. The Watch the Throne concert was 100 percent Kanye West and Jay Z. In addition to performing the songs from their album, the concert also included individual sets from each rapper.

Jay Z performed classic songs such "Jigga What, Jigga Who,"  "Public Service Announcement," and "Big Pimpin.'" As well as newer songs "On to the next one" and "Empire State of Mind" 

Kanye West performed hit songs such as "Jesus Walk," "Heartless," and "Gold Digger."  

Kanye West had what he describes as a ‘Yezzy moment.' When performing his song "All of the Lights," the person in charge of the lights did not turn on majority of the house lights as West desired. After stopping his performance and the music twice, Kanye West finally performed the song with lights shining in every direction.

After performing "Ni**as in Paris" two times. Jay Z and Kanye West thanked the audience for the performance and began slowly walking off stage. As people began to exit, the rappers returned to perform the "Ni**as in Paris" song again. All those who left quickly rushed back to their seats. The duo followed by performing Jay Z's song "Encore."

The constant rays of lights, extravagant visuals, and solo performances kept the audience excited and watching the throne of Kanye West and Jay Z the entire performance.