Can’t knock these hustlers

JAY-Z and Mary J. Blige go way back -- his second chart single was a 1996 duet with the then-ascendant soul diva. So when the two performers opened their Hollywood Bowl concert Wednesday with “Can’t Knock the Hustle,” they set the tone of camaraderie and sweeping career panorama that would define the 2 1/2 -hour affair.

The opening also introduced an attention to sound quality and production values that elevated this concert above the routine. Jay-Z (in black tie) and Blige stood on a high riser at the rear, backed by a projection of a sparkling New York City at night, while their musicians, including a large string and horn section, were positioned below on illuminated bandstands.

The look brought a dash of old-school (old-old-school, actually, as in Stork Club era) glamour to an event that resourcefully combined the star power of two distinctly different but compatible artists.

Either one of them could headline a dutiful concert tour, but pairing them and giving the tour a title, Heart of the City, creates an aura of special occasion. The presence of two legitimate headliners also might take some sting out of the price of the top ticket ($300.75 tonight in Irvine, though to be fair there are cheap seats as well).

Blige and Jay-Z are similarly situated in the marketplace: Both are selling fewer records these days than in their peak years but still retain relevance and momentum.

Blige is just a year beyond a big night at the Grammys for her 2005 album, “The Breakthrough,” while Jay-Z is a multipurpose artist and music mogul who recently signed one of those jackpot, all-bases-covered deals with Live Nation, the producer of this tour.

After their opening duet Wednesday, Jay-Z left the stage to Blige for the first half of the concert. For 16 years, the singer has kept a grip on her audience by serving as an experienced guide through life’s more treacherous challenges, using candid lyrics and that mighty, soul-baring voice to excavate and exorcise demons both internal and imposed by others.

The question was whether she’d still be able to scale those cathartic peaks now that she’s documented her passage into a more balanced and contented state. It wasn’t clear for a while, as she settled into a series of infectious and relatively lighthearted vintage hits, including “You’re All I Need,” “Mary Jane (All Night Long)” and “Real Love” (with Jay-Z returning to contribute a rap.)

She really started getting down to business when she addressed the “ladies,” sharing a complaint about their men’s reluctance to share the wealth. That led into “Feel Like a Woman,” from her latest album, “Growing Pains.” Charming and politically incorrect in depicting the appeal of traditional roles, it epitomizes Blige’s current post-trauma outlook -- thoughtful, irreverent and independent.

Other songs of contentment, including her Grammy-winning “Be Without You,” would come later, but Blige knows that her fans expect a jolt, and she provided it with the back-to-back heart-wringers “No More Drama” and “Not Gon’ Cry.” “I’m so sick and tired of being sick and tired,” she wailed, sinking to her knees as she reconnected with both the spirit of James Brown and those old demons.

That goose-bump moment lingered even as the storm lightened through the rest of her set, and you had to wonder how Jay-Z would be able to follow something like that. He might be one of rap’s biggest stars, but live performance has never been his primary strength.

On the other hand, maybe Blige’s more nuanced emotional expression would have had a hard time following the party atmosphere he generated in his hour-plus barrage of hits.

Wisely rejecting such rap-show conventions as dancers and a crowd of associates, Jay-Z kept the stage lean and took advantage of the live musicians who teamed with his DJ. That made for a powerful and varied sound, from the minimalist rock of “99 Problems” (joined by rapper Memphis Bleek) to the salsa flavor of “Roc Boys (And the Winner Is).”

Blige joined him on “Song Cry” (and again at the very end for “Heart of the City (Ain’t No Love),” and he was happy to let the audience take a verse or a chorus on its own. He also had a little fun at the DJ console, quickly shuffling through and rejecting a series of sampled beats.

Things turned most serious, though, with an image of President Bush on the screen and Jay-Z offering an unaccompanied verse about the plight of Hurricane Katrina victims. He’s spoken out on the issue before, but here he followed it with a photo of Sen. Barack Obama on the screen and an unambiguous endorsement of the Democratic candidate.

“Are you ready for change?” he asked, and the crowd responded with clear if not overwhelming applause. Good news for Obama, perhaps, but the question now might be whether Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton will ask him to repudiate the endorsement because of Jay-Z’s gangsta lyrics.

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richard.cromelin@latimes.com

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Mary J. Blige/Jay-Z

Where: Verizon Wireless Amphitheater, 8808 Irvine Center Drive, Irvine

When: 7:30 tonight

Price: $29.75 to $300.75

Contact: (949)855-8095