Hip-Hop meets classical music in this lively concert featuring a live DJ, MC, and vocalists with a full orchestra.
D-Composed – Chicago’s all-Black chamber music ensemble – opens.
September 9, 2024 (Chicago) The Auditorium -Chicago’s National Landmark Stage at 50 E Ida B. Wells Dr. – presents Thee Phantom & the Illharmonic Orchestra in Hip-Hop Orchestra in Chicago! for a dynamic, genre-blending one-night-only performance, Friday, October 11 at 7:30 PM. Fronted by husband-and-wife duo, Phantom & Phoenix, conductor and MC/vocalist respectively, The Illharmonic combines the raw energy and passion of Hip-Hop with the beautiful sounds of live orchestral accompaniment for a one-of-a-kind experience sure to leave audiences dancing in the aisles. Tickets start at $49.00 and are available at auditoriumtheatre.org or by calling The Auditorium’s Call Center at 312.341.2300.
When was the last time you witnessed strings, horns, woodwinds and piano, at a Hip-Hop concert? Add to that a party-rocking DJ, a fierce soul-songstress and a fire-breathing MC and that is still a fraction of Thee Phantom & The Illharmonic Orchestra in action. This performance marks Thee Phantom & the Illharmonic Orchestra’s first in Chicago since 2017. Opening the concert is D-Composed, the Chicago-based classical chamber music ensemble that exclusively plays music by Black composers.
“The Hip-Hop Orchestra is one of many innovative and genre-blending acts at The Auditorium this season,” said The Auditorium CEO Rich Regan. “We are thrilled to give our audiences the opportunity to see this unique fusion of hip-hop and classical music.”
Thee Phantom – Maestro
Thee Phantom wrote his first rhyme at the age of 8 and made his first beat by mixing the instrumental from the Beastie Boys’ Paul Revere with Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony at age 12. The particular movement of Beethoven’s 5th entitled, “Destiny,” would prove to be both ironic and foretelling for the young musician. In 2002, Phantom became the first Hip-Hop artist to perform at Philadelphia’s prestigious Kimmel Center with musical accompaniment from members of the world-renowned Philadelphia Orchestra and Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia. On November 1, 2015, Thee Phantom backed by his own 25-piece ensemble, took to the stage at the famed Carnegie Hall, becoming just the 3rd Hip-Hop Artist to headline his own show at the esteemed venue. The Illharmonic has since performed at The Kennedy Center, Benaroya Hall, Wolf Trap Amphitheater and many other concert halls in the US.
The Phoenix – Mistress of Ceremony
The Phoenix is a native of Queens, New York. She grew up immersed in the arts and found a strong appreciation for all genres of music at an early age. As a youth she studied flute, piano, dance and sang in her high school choir. She attended Drexel University in Philadelphia, where she majored in dance, but always kept her passion for music, specifically singing on the back burner. Phoenix has toured nationally and internationally as a vocalist and MC and is featured on Phantom’s albums, “Hero Complex,” “Making Of An Underdog,” and “Maniac Maestro.”
About The Auditorium
The Auditorium, located at 50 E. Ida B. Wells Drive in Chicago, is an Illinois not-for-profit organization committed to presenting the finest in international, cultural, community, and educational programming to all of Chicago and beyond as The Theatre for the People. The organization also is committed to the continued restoration and preservation of this National Historic Landmark that originally opened in 1889. For more information on The Auditorium and a complete listing of events at The Auditorium, please visit AuditoriumTheatre.org.