12:07 p.m.: Encore ends with fireworks
Having closed his regular set with the anthemic "Not Afraid," Eminem has begun his encore: a pulsing rendition of "Lose Yourself." With the city skyline glowing behind him, the biggest Detroit music act of the past quarter-century rolls through his signature song.
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It's the biggest moment in a night of big ones. The self-empowerment of "Lose Yourself" couples neatly with the strength-through-humility of "Not Afraid," and with a shot of colorful fireworks, Eminem ends his show on a potent, inspirational note.
11:40 p.m.; No Rihanna, but Lady Gaga expected tomorrow
Eminem launches into the summer's biggest single, "Love the Way You Lie." Ironically, it might be the first disappointment of the night for some fans: confirmation that studio partner Rihanna is not on the night's guest list.
But another female star is expected to be here for Friday night's show: Lady Gaga. The pop star is in Milwaukee tonight, but is headed this way for her Saturday show at the Palace. Folks behind the scenes say she'll spend her Friday night here at Comerica Park, though it's unknown if that's onstage or off.
11:25 p.m.: Working hard with 50 Cent
The stars are definitely out on a Thursday night in Detroit: Now it's 50 Cent onstage with Eminem, working through a head-bobbing rendition of 50's "Patiently Waiting."
The stage lights drop to reveal 50's illuminated jacket. He continues his cameo with a booming "In Da Club" and the night's latest exhortation that fans put their hands up.
Em has certainly put in a shift: It's a gorgeous, mild night in Detroit, but his gray T-shirt is completely drenched in sweat.
11:12 p.m.: An assured pace; B.O.B., Drake come out
Opener B.O.B. has returned to the stage for his Eminem duet "Airplanes II." The songs are rolling one after another now: "Kill You," "The Way I Am," "So Bad," "Stan."
Eminem is locking into a confident groove. The early tension is growing into a self-assured command of the stage, as the rapper pumps his fists to exhort the crowd.
A clean-cut Drake is the next guest out, joining Eminem for a run through their hit "Forever."
11:10 p.m.: D12 helps Em walk through the catalog
About 30 minutes in, it looks to be an eclectic, career-spanning set, as members of D12 occasionally make their way onstage: Em quickly dips back in time, ripping through 1999’s “Kill You” with slinky backing from the live band behind him. He jumps through the years, placing older tunes (“Cleaning Out My Closet”) next to songs from his new “Recovery.”
10:47 p.m.: Trick Trick joins for 'Welcome to Detroit'
A grinning Trick Trick, clad in white, has bounded onstage to join Em for a bumping version of "Welcome to Detroit," a montage of Motor City imagery rolling on the big screen behind them.
10:36 p.m.: Eminem builds ferocious energy
Eminem, a Detroit Tigers hoodie draped over his ballcap, hits the stage for a fierce performance of his new "Won't Back Down." It's already a different vibe than the one set by Jay-Z: sharper, grittier, darker.
He's got the microphone gripped tight as he tensely paces the stage, occasionally glancing out to soak in the sea of bodies in front of him. You can practically feel his heart and adrenaline coursing as he takes in the moment.
10:35 p.m.: First Eminem performance in a while
Lost in the buildup to this week's shows was an important reality: Eminem hasn't spent much time on a concert stage lately. Until Thursday night, the self-confessed studio hermit had played just four full sets since his Comerica Park show in 2005 -- all festival appearances. This first hometown show in half a decade presented a vastly different sort of challenge.
10:05 p.m.: Jay-Z killed it; Eminem up next
Jay-Z has left the stage. Everything is about 15 minutes behind — Eminem is expected to go on at about 10:45 p.m. There's a low buzz around the ballpark as fans take in what they just witnessed: an impressively energetic set that found Jay-Z killing it onstage.
10 p.m.: Entering 'Empire State of Mind' -- 'I'm going to take you home'
Jay-Z heads into the homestretch with an appropriately epic-sized "Empire State of Mind."
"I'm going to take you home -- my home," the New York star tells the receptive Detroit crowd.
Minutes later, grinning wide, he closes up his set with a jazz-laced performance of "Numb."
"I had an incredible time with you," Jay tells the Comerica Park crowd. "This was one of the best experiences of my entire life."
9:40: Frenetic set pauses to honor fallen stars
Jay-Z, dressed in black and wearing a Yankees cap, has been whipping through a loud, fast-paced set, backed by a tight live band and a massive high-def video screen.
This is his stage, but he's been happy to share the spotlight: Young Jeezy and Memphis Bleek have already joined him for onstage collaborations, and Jay devoted a lengthy segment honoring fallen music stars such as Biggie Smalls, Tupac Shakur and Detroiters Proof and Aaliyah.
Hot songs like "Big Pimpin'" and swaying numbers like "Forever Young" have been interspersed with abbreviated medleys of tunes such as "Hard Knock Life" and "A Dream."
With taupe-tinted Detroit images projected behind him, he delivers a jazzy rendition of "Thank You."
8:45 p.m.: Jay starts rocking
With a blast of lights and an epic, squalling rock lick, Jay-Z took the stage at 8:40 p.m., alone at center stage delivering lines from the opening of his 2000 album "The Dynasty: Roc La Familia."
Upon the song's conclusion, he urged show directors to bring the house lights up. "Just give me two minutes -- I've gotta take this all in," he said, grinning as he took in the crowd of 40,000-plus. "This is hip-hop music and this is how far we've come."
8:40 p.m.: The countdown
Curtains have come down, lights are off. An onscreen countdown clock gets fans roaring: 50 seconds 'til Jay-Z hits the stage.
8:37 p.m.: Heavyweights expected
Among the expected guests during Eminem's set: 50 Cent, Dr. Dre and Drake.
8:30 p.m.: A fleet of Escalades
With the Beastie Boys cranked on the stadium PA, there are seven minutes until Jay-Z's set. The rapper and his posse just arrived in a caravan of Escalades behind the right-field wall.
7:30 p.m.: Jay-Z bailing afterward?
Word among show personnel is that Jay-Z will be immediately exiting the stadium upon completion of his set -- in other words, no appearance during Eminem's set. He'll be headed to his waiting Gulfstream jet to fly home to New York, then return tomorrow for the second show. Wife Beyonce is here in Comerica Park.
Jay-Z is waiting for darkness before taking the stage, to accommodate film crews who are chronicling the show. NOTE: Sources later said Jay-Z might have stayed backstage after all.)
8 p.m.: Fans aren't the only ones swarming
At the bars around Comerica Park, there is a huge infestation of some sort of little flying bug. They're everywhere -- no escaping them.
While the southwest entrance of Comerica Park is still featuring a big line, the south eastern side provided relatively quick entry at about 7:45 p.m.
7:30 p.m.: B.O.B. fronts massive backdrop
Fans are still streaming into their seats onto the playing field when the opener, Georgia rapper B.O.B., takes the stage, wearing a red sweater and a painter's cap.
Even with the big video screens flanking the sides of the stage, he seems dwarfed by the massiveness of the set-up, placed in Comerica Park’s centerfield area.
Outside of the venue, fans are getting antsy — even scared, with some speculating the size of the lines could mean it would be 45 minutes — or even hours — before they could get into the building.
7:15 p.m.: Lines everywhere
Comerica Park looks like the scene of one of the biggest concerts in recent memory: Crazy.
The lines to get into the building are huge -- one stretches onto Grand Circus Park, past the front door of Cheli's Chili Bar and almost to Woodward.
When the doors opened at 6 p.m., it was a stampede to gain position in front of stage, with general admission seating on the ballpark's field. Fans described a scene where the ground was slick, and people wiped out as they ran toward the stage.
Traffic on freeways approaching Comerica Park was jammed, and no doubt made worse because the Lions are playing exhibition game next door at Ford Field.
6:30 p.m.: A marketplace outside Comerica Park
It's about an hour before the expect show time, and still hours before the stars of the evening — Eminem and Jay-Z — are expected to take the stage.
But Comerica Park and environs are positively buzzing. Commerce is happening everywhere. Tickets scalpers are working the corners —$150? $125? $100? Parking lot attendants are charging $25-$35 in the immediate vicinity of the stadium.
Kurtis Garza-Rupp, 22, from Fremont, Ohio, has been at the nearby Town Pump Tavern since about 4 p.m. The bars around CoPa are filled with a mix of concertgoers and Detroit Lions fans, downtown for the team’s exhibition game at Ford Field.
Garza-Rupp says he's a Tigers season ticket-holder with other family members, but tonight he's rooting for the away team: Jay-Z.
“I'm a fan of both artists but I'm really excited to see Jay-Z. I'm really a fan of what he does, I've admired his work musically, the producers he's worked with, for a long time. I'm really impressed with what he's done throughout his career."
Earlier in the afternoon, the reverberations from Jay-Z's and Eminem’s sound checks could be heard outside the park, while fans speculated what big-name stars might make guest appearances. Big names like Rihanna, Pink and Dr. Dre were being mentioned.
Kenny Gaspar, 22, of Westchester County, N.Y., says he just got into town after a 15-hour bus drive with Madina Tagasheva, 21, from Kazakhstan. Tagasheva, who describes herself as a "huge Eminem fan," has been in the U.S. for a month in hopes of seeing tonight's show.
"This, for me, is the best of both worlds. I'm from New York so of course I listen to Jay-Z but I've always listened to Eminem and can't wait to the see show here in Detroit," Gaspar says. "I want to go to the NYC shows but those are sold out and expensive."
Read more: Eminem, Jay-Z show has 40,000 fans roaring | freep.com | Detroit Free Press
http://www.freep.com/article/2010090...#ixzz0ySUqu34n
Oh well, I doubt it's true anyway. Besides, I'm seeing her tomorrow at the palace!!!!!! 
