There’s no point questioning Jay-Z’s talent or prowess as a live performer. He’s one of the brightest hip-hop acts on wax as well as onstage. Here’s the thing: Jay-Z is a great live act without being a great live act. He’s not as animated as, say, Busta Rhymes. He simply fastens himself to the saddle of his hit-stuffed catalog and rides seamlessly to the finish line. Everyone else is probably pissed at him for making it seem so effortless. Some rappers have two or three songs that always send audiences into a rapturous cheer. Jay-Z has about 40 of those. In fact, he could easily construct a concert around all 40, watch the crowd go nuts, and call it a day. But he’s too good to settle, which was apparent Monday night at the Toyota Center.

Photo by Henry Adaso

On stage, Jay-Z generates the wildly idealistic arena-rap portraits bigwigs are no longer hungry enough to bother with and Lil Wayne never had the focus to work up. Jay is a master in his own universe, or as he would say, “I don't run rap no more I run the map. Small part of the reason the president is black. Told him I got him when he hit me on the jack.” He’s so cool that the President wants to be down with him. Not the other way around.

You don't appreciate his new songs? Well, he'll show you. He'll unleash 10 songs from his new album and perform some of them sans the beats so you’ll fully appreciate the copious amounts of genius that went into crafting them.

For his blockbuster single “Empire State of Mind,” he brought out 21-year old Roc Nation signee Bridget Kelly to belt out Alicia Keys’ part. B.K., who is also an N.Y. native, did a decent job of carrying the patina of a powerful vocalist.

A pivotal moment in the concert arrived when Jay played a video clip of then-candidate Barack Obama brushing dirt off his shoulders, which he then segued into a spirited performance of “Dirt Off Your Shoulders.”

Need proof that Jay’s devotees adore everything he does? Look no further than the crowd’s reaction to his interpretation of “My President Is Black,” which celebrates Barack Obama’s historic election. The novelty of that historic election may have worn off, but you wouldn’t know it from the thunderous chorus that accompanied Jay’s performance.

As Jay wrapped up the show and thanked everyone for coming out, he spotted a young man wearing a shirt holding a poster with the inscription, “Top 3 MCs: Jay-Z, Jigga, Hova.” Jay-Z gave him a shout-out, adding “I might put that on the next album.”