There was considerably more than 50 cents banked by all concerned after American

rap superstar 50 Cent jammed Aktiv Square with more than 20,000 fans last Sunday.

The boisterous Thai and foreign audience happily obeyed every entreaty from the stage, putting up their hands and making some noise on command and generally rapping along with every funky rhythm dished out.

Three local hip-hop acts opened the show - the Thai-inflected Asian Embassy, the naughty boy duo Du-Ja-Da and the ocean-jumping boy trio Thaitanium.

Ringing the outdoor square were dozens of booths inputting fast food and beer, but once again there weren't enough toilets to keep up with the output, resulting in plenty of al fresco peeing.

The first of the foreign bands on stage was Fort Minor, led by Linkin Park's MC Mike Shinoda, who opened with "Remember the Name", "Going Down" and "Dolla" before striding into the Linkin hits "In the End" and "Numb".

"It is my second time here, but the first time for the rest of these guys," Shinoda shouted. "Make some noise for these guys! Are you Fort Minor fans?"

Getting a confidence boost, they then kicked into "Where'd You Go", "Feels Like Home" and "Petrified". The first was a ballad, so Shinoda wanted to see lighters flickering in the crowd, then realised it was too windy, so he got the fans to wave their cell phones instead.

There was a flurry of instrumental virtuosity, including a pair of violins on "Black Violin", before Shinoda - fully aware what the fans wanted to hear next - teased them at length until finally breaking into "Believe Me".

It was time for the real star of the day, but 50 Cent's introduction came in the form of a cheesy cinematic homage to himself, beginning with the trailer for his quasi-biographical film "Get Rich or Die Tryin'", a montage of celebrity endorsements and news footage.

With friends like Lloyd Banks, Young Buck and DJ Whoo Kid on hand to help him out, 50 Cent, live onstage at last, roared through nearly 30 tracks - all interspersed with the sound of gunfire (fortunately only the sound).

The magic formula of catchy hooks, booty-shaking beats and outrageous rhymes kept the hip hopping, and Olivia, part of the rapper's the G-Unit crew, added to the frenzy performing "Candy Shop" and "So Amazing".

The energy maintained for a full hour and a half was indeed amazing, and 50 closed the show with a stunner too, tossing into the audience not just his cap, not just some T-shirts, not even just a pair of his signature Reebok sneakers but his slacks as well.

He may have left Bangkok in his boxers, but he left Bangkok satisfied.

Kitchana Lersakvanitchakul

The Nation