Lupe Fiasco and Travis Porter performed to an excited AU crowd at this year’s Welcome Week concert on Aug. 24, hosted by AU Student Government’s Student Union Board.
Nearly 3,000 AU students filed into Bender Arena to see Lupe and his opening act, Atlanta rap trio Travis Porter. Running only a few minutes behind, no students seemed to care as WVAU DJs kept the crowd amped for the Welcome Week performer.
The group came out to a hyped crowd, which only heightened the energy. Beginning and ending with hits “Bring it Back” and “Ayy Ladies,” respectively, the trio also performed songs such as “Go Shorty Go” and “Make it Rain.”
True to their roots of making “strip club music,” there was even a portion of the set where they brought some lucky females to the stage for a dance contest. An interlude of hot hip-hop songs of 2013 like “Versace” and “All Gold Everything,” provided by Travis Porter’s DJ, topped off the set.
After a brief intermission, it was time for the main event as Lupe took the stage. Fiasco kept his show lighthearted by letting loose his sarcastic brand of humor, making the crowd laugh in between performances of songs like “Out Of My Head” and “Bitch Bad.” He also joked that his first hit, “Kick, Push” (a song about skateboarding) was so well-received because it was a song for white people put over a hip-hop beat.
The show couldn’t go on much longer without Fiasco playing a slew of his sing-along hits, such as “Superstar” off of his second album “The Cool” and “Battle Scars,” a single which recently went platinum. Fiasco surprised the crowd by finishing his set by performing a sample of his new song featuring R&B crooner Chris Brown, set to be on Fiasco’s upcoming fifth studio album.
While the show didn’t go off perfectly – there were two instances where someone made it past the barricade and onto the stage with Fiasco – the rapper kept his cool and kept the show going. The high energy brought by Travis Porter barely, if at all, diminished throughout Fiasco’s set.
jmorice@theeagleonline.com
