LL Cool J unveils Kings of the Mic U.S. tour dates -- Minneapolis in May

Four rap institutions are linking up for the Kings of the Mic tour later this year. Though LL Cool J, Public Enemy, Ice Cube, and De La Soul have wildly different pedigrees and styles (and levels of movie stardom), this is a lineup that just keeps giving. When one ponders the sheer number of hits that even any two of these acts has in their arsenal, this could theoretically be a six-hour show.

And even if it stays at a reasonable duration, the combination of raw political fury, pop bombast, experimental fusion, and gangsta grit will have a lot of sentimental rap heads (Gimme Noise included) thinking about the good 'ole days. Starting in mid-May, the tour hits 26 cities. Assuredly, LL will spend a lot less time talking about hashtags than he did at the Grammys last month.

See Also:
Ice Cube's good days begin with Peace Coffee from Minneapolis
Public Enemy's Chuck D: Yeah, I voted in the 2012 election
The tour rolls through Minneapolis on May 30 with a stop at Target Center. LL Cool J will have DJ Z-Trip in tow for the dates, and is in hot promotion mode for his 14th studio album, Authentic, which drops April 30. Though he is listed as the headliner for the show, you can bet that this is one night when the majority of the crowd shows up early to catch the cavalcade from Rock and Roll Hall of Famers Public Enemy, the mind-expanding power of De La Soul, and the man who performed at Gimme Noise's first concert of his adult life (1995 at Roy Wilkins Auditorium!), Ice Cube.

Kings of the Mic tour dates:

Thu 05/23/13    Tucson, AZ - Anselmo Valencia Tori Amphitheatre

Fri 05/24/13      Las Vegas, NV - The Joint

Sat 05/25/13     Mountain View, CA - Shoreline Amphitheatre

Sun 05/26/13    Santa Barbara, CA - Santa Barbara Bowl

Thu 05/30/13    Minneapolis, MN - Target Center

Fri 05/31/13      Council Bluffs, IA - Harrah's Casino - Stir Concert Cove

Sat 06/01/13     St. Louis, MO - Scottrade Center

Tue 06/04/13    Atlanta, GA - Fox Theatre

Thu 06/06/13    Saint Petersburg, FL - Mahaffey Theater

Fri 06/07/13      Saint Augustine, FL - St. Augustine Amphitheatre

Wed 06/12/13   Baltimore, MD Modell - Performing Arts Center At The Lyric

Fri 06/14/13      Simpsonville, SC - Charter Amphitheatre

Sat 06/15/13     Portsmouth, VA - Ntelos Wireless Pavilion

Sun 06/16/13    Durham, NC - Durham Performing Arts Center

Tue 06/18/13    Newark, NJ - New Jersey Perf. Arts Center

Wed 06/19/13  Boston, MA - Bank Of America Pavilion

Thu 06/20/13   New York, NY - Roseland Ballroom

Sat 06/22/13    Canandaigua, NY - Constellation Brands - Marvin Sands PAC (CMAC)

Sun 06/23/13   Mount Pleasant, MI - Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort

Tue 06/25/13   Cleveland, OH - Jacobs Pavilion At Nautica

Wed 06/26/13  Clarkston, MI - DTE Energy Music Theatre

Thu 06/27/13   Cincinnati, OH - Riverbend Music Center

Mon 07/01/13  Grand Prairie, TX - Verizon Theatre At Grand Prairie

Tue 07/02/13   Austin, TX - Stubb's Bar-B-Q / Waller Creek Amph.

Tickets for the Target Center show cost $49.50-$75.00, and go on sale Friday, March 22 at noon. Click here.

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