On August 7th, 2013, opposites definitely attracted.

“Detroit Rock City,” Justin Timberlake yelled out as he took his first steps on the stage, “let me hear ya!”. Beside him, Jay-Z beamed a grin out to the crowd as a boom of applause, cheers, and whistles began to echo throughout Ford Field. The legends became silhouettes as the entire stage turned a deep red. Suddenly, Timberlakeʼs familiar voice rang out into the stadium. Mesmerized by his sweet whining, the crowd became calm and silent- even the diehard fans simply mouthed along to the lyrics of “Holy Grail”.  30 seconds later, when Jay-Zʼs began his first verse, they were screaming again.

The night was bookend by duoʼs only two recorded collaborations, beginning with “Holy Grail” and ending, save for the finale, with “Suit & Tie”. The venue, essentially vacant 30 minutes from the 8 pm start time, quickly filled with people and excitement. For the remainder of the show, the stadium radiated with energy and diversity.

The aisles were filled with all sorts of people- old, young, black, white. The majority seemed to be in their mid twenties, which makes sense; in the early, 2000s, these late 80s/early 90s babies were at the perfect age to appreciate Jay-Z at his prime and Timberlake at the peak of his fame.

As expected, the setlist was as diverse as the crowd.

For most of the songs, the performers shared the stage. Yet their seemingly effortless fusion kept the night interesting; as Timberlake belted one of his famous songs, little snippets of Jay-Z classic would jump from the background; while the spotlight was on Jay-Z spitting out the lyrics to “99 Problems”, Timberlake could be seen off to the side jamming on the guitar. Throughout the show, Justin was all over- on the guitar, piano, and, of course, up on his feet wowing with his signature dance moves.

Both performers seemed to be genuinely enjoying the night, the crowd, and each other. Timberlake was just as you would expect- youthful, cocky, and a full of sleek dance moves. Jay-Z pulled it all together with his calm pacing, strong rapping and laid-back aura. Their good attitudes rubbed off on the crowd- even the security guards couldn’t stop tapping their feet.

Although Timberlake and Jay-Z come from different music genres, their matching vibe held the night together. Their differences allowed them to play off one another, while their similar sense of confidence and ease united the set. When they wound the night down with “Suit & Tie”, the legends sauntered around the stage, each dressed in a suit and holding a glass of champagne. As the song ended, they slowly sat down, clinked their flutes, and shared a cocky grin.

After being begged for an encore, they ended the performance with Young Forever. They dedicated the emotional song to Trayvon Martin, the Florida Teenager whose fatal shooting last year sparked much racial outrage and debate, and to the city of Detroit. Their dedication pulled together the overall feeling of racial unity that permeated throughout the concert and left the audience thinking about more than just music.

The crowd- energized, sweaty and satisfied- ended the night with booming cheers.

There’s no doubt Justin heard them.

Photo credits to Sam Sorscher