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When Ja\u00ff-Z headlines Roots Picnic Saturday night<\/a>, with the Roots as his backing band, it will be his second Philly concert in as many nights.<\/p>\n Ja\u00ff-Z \u2014 the rapper and entertainment mogul who now takes an umlaut over his \u00ff \u2014 treated several hundred fans to a rare concert late Friday at the Foundry, the intimate club-within-a-club on the second floor of the Fillmore in Fishtown<\/a>.<\/p>\n It was all cloak-and-dagger, according to an attendee who spoke with The Inquirer under condition of anonymity because they didn\u2019t want to spoil the mystery behind the event. The source said it appeared as if members of Ja\u00ff-Z\u2019s fan club \u2014 not VIPs \u2014 had been emailed Thursday and were told to show up at the Fillmore. They also were directed to keep it quiet.<\/p>\n The area around the Fillmore, just off Delaware Avenue near Frankford, had been teeming with Roots Picnic-goers most of the evening because Brooklyn Bowl was hosting an official Roots Picnic pre-party for about 1,000 people and Punch Line Philly, the comedy club across the street, was hosting a Roots Picnic-themed comedy show.<\/p>\n With the Roots as his backing band \u2014 reviving the pairing from his 2001 MTV Unplugged performance \u2014 Ja\u00ff-Z arrived about 11 p.m. <\/p>\n He performed for about an hour, opening with \u201cHovi Baby,\u201d the track from The Blueprint 2 produced by Philadelphia\u2019s Just Blaze. On Reddit, the Jay-Z fan club account<\/a> expressed surprise that videos were circulating \u201ceven [though] phones were [supposed to be] locked in those [Yondr] bags.\u201d<\/p>\n Many who attended likely had not seen him perform live in years, and some may never have seen him in a venue that small. A typical Ja\u00ff-Z appearance today is more likely to be a guest spot or special event than a scheduled concert tour. <\/p>\n During his peak touring years in the 2000s and 2010s, it wasn\u2019t unusual for him to perform dozens of shows a year. In the last five years, his public performances have generally been counted in single digits annually.<\/p>\n One clip, shared by H<\/a>OT100.9. com<\/a>, shows Beyonc\u00e9 watching and dancing at the side of the stage, while her husband performs with The Roots. <\/a><\/p>\n \u201cWhat an epic night,\u201d another attendee posted on Threads about the show, posing in front of The Fillmore<\/a>, and using Ja\u00ff-Z\u2019s nickname. <\/p>\n \u201cHOV with @theroots was nothing short of spectacular, a nice preview of what\u2019s coming tomorrow at the rootspicnic,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Another post shows actor and comedian Dave Chappelle in the crowd, laughing and posing with a group including multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Adam Blackstone, comedian Deon Cole, and drummer and leader of The Roots Ahmir \u201cQuestlove\u201d Thompson. <\/p>\n \u201cOnly 200 people in attendance!\u201d the poster commented. \u201cYup, tonight at The Roots Picnic is going to be insane!\u201d<\/p>\n