Hundreds of AU students lined up outside of the Mary Graydon Center on Nov. 18 to see hip-hop group Chiddy Bang and their special guest, Hoodie Allen. And while the show was entertaining and played to the interests of the crowd, technical and atmospheric issues jilted the vibes of the show.
After doors opened a half hour later than originally intended, students were shuttled into the Tavern in small groups, presumably so that it wouldn’t hit maximum capacity. However, the Tavern was nowhere near full, despite the line of students waiting to see the show reached as far back as Kogod. Thankfully, Hoodie Allen did not delay his performance much longer after the doors had closed.
Allen opened his set with the appropriately-titled “The Chase is On,” off of his 2011 mixtape “Leap Year.” He proceeded to play hits from all of his well-known tapes, including his breakout hit “You are Not a Robot,” a song that samples Marina and the Diamonds’ song “I Am Not a Robot.” Allen played off of the welcoming vibes of the crowd, many of whom were unfamiliar with his music.
Allen also sprinkled covers and cover intros and outros into his setlist. For example, he blended Miley Cyrus’s “Party in the USA” with his song “#WhiteGirlProblems,” as well as covering “Fight for Your Right” by the Beastie Boys. This differentiation in his setlist was not unenjoyable, but for those who didn’t know Allen’s music, it would have been better for him to play more original songs. Allen closed his set with his biggest hit to date — one that even got some radio airplay — “No Interruption,” leaving the crowd amped for Chiddy Bang.
When Chiddy Bang came onstage, the whole crowd perked up, yet the duo (comprised of rappers Chiddy and Xaphoon Jones) chose to start the show with what they called “songs to vibe to” rather than an upbeat song to start the show with a bang (pun intended). These songs weren’t bad by any means, but they weren’t exactly concert-friendly either. However, the show definitely didn’t lull for long.
At one point, Chiddy went backstage (or into some sort of seclusion) while Jones asked the crowd for words/phrases to use in a freestyle. Chiddy then proceeded to shock the crowd with his freestyle talents. They continued on, performing “High,” a song off of Big Sean’s album “Finally Famous,” in which they were featured. They also played the Motown-inspired “Ray Charles” off of their recently-released album “Breakfast” and eventually ended the show with their hit “Opposite of Adults.”
The audience couldn’t get enough, and Chiddy Bang graciously did an encore, performing another hit from “Breakfast,” the upbeat “Mind Your Manners.”
Both Hoodie Allen and Chiddy Bang pleased the crowd with their talents, yet the atmosphere was less than satisfactory. The stage was too low, preventing people even a few rows back from seeing the musicians at all. Additionally, the microphones were barely louder than the music being played, and the lighting was horrific. It blinded the crowd and made the artists look spooky. Their shows were unfortunately negatively affected by these mishaps.
jmorice@theeagleonline.com
