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Chalk up one small blow for diversity, if not for overriding musical excellence. Dubbed "A Gathering of the Tribes," the all-day pop smorgasbord on Sunday at the Pacific Amphitheatre in Costa Mesa attracted 9,000 to 10,000 people, according to promoters-not bad for a 14-act bill that lacked even a single marquee name capable of headlining an amphitheater in Orange County.
This gathering sprang from English rocker Ian Astbury's idea of creating a festival of contrasting stylists ranging from hard rock to folk to rap. While at least 95% of the audience was white, listeners' enthusiastic embrace of the lineup's two rap acts, and their willingness to sample and enjoy the 10-hour day's full range of performers, showed that diversity has a constituency.
Any worries about rap being rejected, or merely tolerated,...