Eminem and Jay-Z: Hip-hop giants deliver Detroit double-header

Taylor Fossey doesn't need to be reminded of the historic nature of Eminem and Jay-Z's two-night stand at Comerica Park. He and four others traveled from Edmonton, Canada, to Thursday's concert, the first of two local shows -- the other is tonight -- featuring the two hip-hop megastars.

"We really wanted to come to Detroit and see Eminem," said Fossey, 24. He and his friends took two flights to get to Detroit and are staying in a hotel across the river in Windsor. "This is going to be epic."

"Epic" is definitely a word to describe the pairing of Em and Jay-Z, if gauged only by the crowd that shook the stadium during both performances Thursday night. The two artists, the upper crust of hip-hop's elite, came together for two concerts in Detroit and will perform two shows later this month at Yankee Stadium in Jay-Z's hometown of New York. The extremely limited run of shows, dubbed the "Home and Home" series, as well as the stature of the two stars only increased the anticipation among fans and those in the industry.

Like Fossey, Army veteran Keith Johnson ended up in Detroit -- by way of Iraq -- Thursday night. Just home from his tour, Johnson needed a pick-me-up.

Without a ticket and forced to stand outside the park with his wife, Darlene, at his side, Johnson reveled in the music as though he had a front seat to history.

"It's one of the largest concerts the city has had in years," he said. "(Eminem and Jay-Z) did this for a reason -- to give something to Detroit and we needed this ... it's uplifting."

For Detroit, it is undoubtedly uplifting -- and the hottest concert event since Eminem -- the No. 1-selling artist from 2000-2010, according to Nielsen SoundScan -- performed back-to-back shows at Detroit's Ford Field in 2003. Those were the only concerts Em performed that year, and drew fans from all over the U.S. and Canada.

"They are only doing Detroit and New York, so it is an appealing package," said Gary Bongiovanni, editor of Pollstar magazine, which tracks the concert industry. "Certainly, Eminem is the king in Detroit and Jay-Z is the king in New York, so it is an interesting pairing. That combination is one plus one equaling three."

From Spain to Fowlerville

Ticket sales for this week's Comerica Park shows have come from each of the 50 states and from as far away as Switzerland, Spain and Australia, according to concert promoter Live Nation. Raychel Galba, 28, of Shelby Township won tickets to the show. As she stood inside the stadium Thursday, she was surprised by the broad appeal of the two artists. "There's a wide variety of people here," she said, surveying the crowd. "Young and old. It's really cool."

Others didn't want to miss a likely once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

"It is the biggest concert of the year," said Brandy Belcher, 31, of Fowlerville. "People are going to be talking about this 10, 20 years from now."

The concerts cap a summer that has seen Eminem regain his crown as one of music's brightest stars. His "Recovery" CD has sold more than 2.3 million copies and spent seven weeks as the country's top-selling record. To date, it is the year's best-selling album. Meanwhile, "Love the Way You Lie," his scorching-hot duet with pop singer Rihanna, has been the country's No. 1 song for seven weeks, and its video has been viewed nearly 75 million times on YouTube in the four weeks since it debuted.

The Comerica Park shows mark a homecoming for Eminem, who hasn't performed a full concert in his hometown since 2005. Shortly after he brought his Anger Management 3 tour to Comerica that year, he checked himself into rehab.

"It's pretty amazing that he's starting right where he left off," said Paul Rosenberg, Eminem's manager. "It's right back to the same stage this many years later, so it's really exciting for him to be back at the same place. To have this opportunity to do it again is something he's really excited about."

Em, Hova bring it home

Eminem's co-conspirator for the two concerts, Jay-Z, is also one of music's top draws, his popularity transcending the boundaries of hip-hop. He proved his crossover appeal this year when he headlined a pair of massive rock festivals -- Indio, Calif.'s Coachella and Manchester, Tenn.'s Bonnaroo festivals -- becoming the first hip-hop star to top the bill at those two fests.

Thursday and Friday's Comerica Park concerts show the drawing power of rap music, according to MTV News' hip-hop editor, Shaheem Reid.

"It means that hip-hop can give you the ultimate explosion," Reid said. "These are absolutely the two biggest names in the genre, and they're showing when we put our minds together, we can come together and make something historic for the culture. These guys are at the top of the craft -- the top of music period -- and they're going to give something to the fans to cherish for years to come."

Detroit News Staff Writers Mark Hicks, Santiago Esparza and Ursula Watson contributed.