EarthGang brought a bit of Atlanta to Champaign-Urbana on Saturday night, with the hip-hop duo putting on a high-energy performance at The Canopy Club to conclude PYGMALION.
Since its founding in 2005, PYGMALION has expanded from simply being a music festival. This year’s lineup featured an array of talented artists, including stand-up comedian Josh Johnson, DJ duo Oddly Satisfying and the undeniably fabulous Bob the Drag Queen.
Made up of Olu (Johnny Venus) and WowGr8 (Doctur Dot), EarthGang has been making music together since high school, and in 2017, signed to J. Cole’s record label Dreamville.
They recently released their first independent album, “PERFECT FANTASY,” last October — a boundary-defying project that explores themes of AI and human experience.
Energy was radiating from The Canopy Club’s Big Room, even before the duo stepped foot on the stage. Chicago artist Joel Q opened directly before the pair, working with the DJ to hype up the crowd, both with his own music and other artists’ songs.
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The crowd was sparse at first, with large gaps of space in between groups of friends trying to talk over the booming bass reverberating from the stage. But as 10 p.m. neared and anticipation filled the air, people started cramming in, pushing to get closer to the barricade.
Thomas Kang, junior in Engineering, has been a fan of EarthGang since a friend recommended Olu and WowGr8’s hip-hop collective Spillage Village to him a few years ago.
Though hearing about PYGMALION, Kang never attended the festival before — until he saw EarthGang’s name on the lineup.
“I’ve always looked at the lineup and stuff like that, and this was the first thing that kind of caught my eye,” Kang said. “So I’m glad I came here.”
Going into the concert, Kang was looking forward to seeing a Grammy-nominated artist in C-U. The 62nd annual Grammy Awards nominated EarthGang for two awards: Best Rap Album for “Revenge of the Dreamers III” and Best Rap Performance for “Down Bad.”
“The fact that they’re here in Urbana-Champaign is pretty crazy to me,” Kang said.
Right at 10 p.m., Olu and WowGr8 appeared on stage and immediately began their set with “GODLY,” off of their album “PERFECT FANTASY.”
Their bars were sharp and fast, the duo spitting the lyrics live in a way that sounded almost identical to the recorded song. The jumbo screens behind them lit up with bright colors, displaying vibrant images that corresponded with the futuristic themes of “PERFECT FANTASY.”
“Y’all look amazing, man, make some noise for yourselves,” EarthGang said. “We go by the name of EarthGang. We’re from Atlanta, Georgia; it’s a f—— pleasure to be here tonight.”
They took up the entire stage, interacting with each side of the crowd throughout the evening. Between multiple songs, the pair led fans through several interactive chants, splitting the crowd into two parts and having everyone scream “Earth” or “Gang” as loud as possible.
Olu and WowGr8’s chemistry was evident throughout the set; they had smiles on their faces as they interacted both with each other and the audience, giggling and cracking jokes under the fluorescent stage lights.
EarthGang played songs from almost every era of their discography, playing “Down Bad” from “Revenge of the Dreamers III” along with songs from the more recent “PERFECT FANTASY.”
Carter Kim, junior in Information Sciences, wasn’t extremely familiar with EarthGang before the performance; he simply just wanted to “come and enjoy the show.”
“My focus was on their live performance … like, how different are they compared to their albums,” Kim said. “I think they’re better live.”
Similar to Kim, Justin Lee, junior in Engineering, wasn’t familiar with EarthGang before the concert — or rap music in general. Despite being new to both the artist and the genre, he described the performance as amazing.
“I didn’t know how good they were,” Lee said. “They’re so talented.”
At the end of the performance, Olu and WowGr8 exited the stage and came to the barricade to sign shirts for people and take selfies with fans, creating a memorable end to PYGMALION’s final day.
