The independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois since 1871

The Daily Illini

The independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois since 1871

The Daily Illini

The independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois since 1871

The Daily Illini

The independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois since 1871

The Daily Illini

Joey Bada$$ brings out Chance the Rapper in passionate rap set

Joey+Bada%24%24+begins+his+performance+at+the+Titos+stage%2C+bringing+in+a+huge+crowd+shortly+after+Lil+Yachtys+neighbor+concert+at+Bud+Light+came+to+an+end+on+Sunday.+
James Hoeck
Joey Bada$$ begins his performance at the Titos stage, bringing in a huge crowd shortly after Lil Yachty’s neighbor concert at Bud Light came to an end on Sunday.

Rapper Joey Bada$$ brought the heat to the Tito’s Handmade Vodka stage on Sunday afternoon. The hour-long set featured a surprise guest appearance and lots of positivity from Bada$$.

A huge crowd of fans walked to the stage straight from Lil Yachty’s performance to enjoy a second rap set. 

Dressed in a white shirt with only some lighting to decorate his set, Joey Bada$$ filled the stage with his energy, which quickly spread to the crowd.

The performance was not Joey Bada$$’s first appearance at the festival, as he had previously played Lollapalooza in 2017.

The artist said that his 2023 crowd was a big step up, as in 2017 “the energy wasn’t nowhere near the energy right now.”

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Everyone in the audience had their hands in the air during the rapper’s performance of “For My People.” 

Joey Bada$$ performed “Show Me” from his 2022 album “2000.” The song is the most popular from the album by far, currently sitting at over 42 million streams on Spotify.

The rapper’s performance suffered from repeated interruptions from the nearby Bud Light stage, where fans awaiting Lana Del Rey’s upcoming performance were being instructed to back up from the stage in order to prevent overcrowding.

The artist preached a message of love and positivity to the crowd, expressing his feeling that there is too much hate in the world today.

Joey Bada$$ performed his most popular song “Love Is Only A Feeling,” which has almost 350 million streams on Spotify. 

The message of love continued as Joey Bada$$ paid his respects to late rappers Juice WRLD and Nipsey Hussle.

He additionally dedicated a song to late rapper XXXTentacion, who was killed in 2018. Joey Bada$$ performed his and Tentacion’s song “Infinity (888)” to a hugely positive reaction from the crowd.

With 15 minutes left in his set, Joey Bada$$ mentioned that he has many friends in Chicago. He then brought surprise guest Chance the Rapper to the stage, causing the energy of the crowd to spike.

Onlookers and crowd members rushed to the stage as Chance the Rapper and Joey Bada$$ performed “No Problem” and their single “The Highs and The Lows.”

Chance the Rapper left the stage with a few minutes of the set left to go. Crowd members kept buzzing after the rapper was gone, and began chanting “JOEY” repeatedly.

Joey Bada$$ finished out his set with another one of his most popular hits, “Devastated.” The performance left the crowd cheering for the rapper even after he left the stage.

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About the Contributors
Maaike Niekerk
Maaike Niekerk, Arts & Entertainment Editor
My name is Maaike Niekerk, and I am a sophomore majoring in English with minors in music and journalism. I began working with The Daily Illini during the fall semester of my freshman year as a buzz staff writer, and joined the editorial team last summer. I love bringing live event coverage to you from Champaign-Urbana’s vibrant music scene and sharing stories of local artists and musicians. Outside of The Daily Illini, you’ll find me performing at every football game with the Marching Illini or cycling with the 2024 Illini 4000 bike America team.
James Hoeck
James Hoeck, Photo Editor
Heyo! I am James Hoeck, a third-year undergraduate student in photography with a minor in media. I have been a part of Illini Media for two years, starting back in fall 2021. I hold the position of Photo Editor here at The Daily Illini. I also work as Photo Editor for Illini Media’s Illio Yearbook. There is a good chance you will see me out and about on campus taking photos for my personal work or for The DI and/or Illio! If you want to check out more of my work, visit my socials linked below.
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