AFTER blistering performances at Dancehall Night on Thursday, Friday’s International Night brought much less heat and it was up to Common and TI to bring some level of excitement to the penultimate night of Reggae Sumfest.

In front of a sparse audience inside the Catherine Hall Entertainment Complex, rapper Common was the first of the two to take to the stage. His intrinsic musical style meant that he had to build a relationship with the audience, which was by no means instant. But once patrons began having the ‘I-know-that-song’ moment, the excitement began to build.

The Chicago native created a vibe with his message music and, with the exception of a few expletives, he was able to connect. Tracks like On the Corner and his free-style rap, which included descriptions of Jamaica, endeared him to his audience.

His set was beautifully accentuated by the vocals of singer MumuFresh, who provided strong harmonies and support for his popular tracks.

This combo went over well on Love Of My Life, originally recorded with Erykah Badu, and The Light. His delivery of On the Count of Three also earned him support from the audience.

But for many it was Glory, his Golden Globe and Academy Award-winning track from the movie Selma, recorded with John Legend, that many wanted to hear. And from the introductory notes, the Sumfest audience was ready. Common and MumuFresh left them spellbound.

He prepared the stage for his fellow hip hopper TI who held the younger members of the audience from the moment he stepped onto the stage.

Patron Shen summed up the feeling of the majority of the younger females.

“I came to see TI… Gosh he was great, Common was good too. I did scream a lot for TI. He was like the boss, and everything he did was great, trust me,” she told the Sunday Observer.

Taking the stage at 3:30 am, TI wasted no time dropping his hits, which included Whatever You Like, Classic Man and Pledge Allegiance, which he recorded with Rick Ross, who was originally set for Sumfest but withdrew due to legal complications.

TI also did Live Your Life and a number of rhymes from his early days. A surprise was the cameo by Beenie Man, who collaborated on I’m Serious, TI’s first recording.

After over an hour of non-stop entertainment, TI simply dropped the mic and walked away to cheers.

Prior to Common and TI, the night’s openers — Dominican roots-reggae act ORieL and north coast showgirl Kareen — did their best, performing to an almost empty park.

The audience showed great appreciation for members of the reggae revival fraternity — Raging Fyah, Keznamdi, Jesse Royal and Kabaka Pyramid.

For each, the audience seemed to wait for a particular track to amp up their appreciation.

For Raging Fyah, it was Judgement Day; Keznamdi’s popular track was Live for Today featuring his sister Kelissa. For Jesse Royal, it was Modern Day Judas, and Kabaka would score with Mi Alright, recorded with Chronixx.

The excitement created by the international acts dropped significantly with closing act, veteran singer Cocoa Tea.

The fisherman from Rocky Point, Clarendon seemed affected by the majority of the audience having left the park following Common and TI’s performances.

Reggae Sumfest 2015 was set to conclude last night with performances from Jennifer Hudson, Christopher Martin, LUST and Yazz.