Big Boi, Girl Talk
Southern Methodist University
April 15, 2010
Better than: Big Boi's set getting canceled as well.
Many unsuspecting
local music fans had the same reaction upon hearing that there would be a free
concert on the SMU campus featuring Outkast's Big Boi and mash-up artist Girl
Talk. The consensus response, for the most part, was that it seemed almost too good to be
true.
Turns out those with that response were right in the end.
The Doak Walker Plaza where last night's free concert at SMU was held is situated in the area
just east of Ford Stadium--and virtually across the street from the last
stand of
residential on the school's ever-widening turf. The 3000 block of
Potomac Avenue
is the only thing that lies between SMU and the shopping center on
Mockingbird
that is home to the SMU Bookstore and La Madeleine.
Meaning? It
essentially exists as an island, with property owned by the university
surrounding it on all sides.
So when the plaza began to swell for
Big
Boi's 8 o'clock performance last night, it seems that Potomac residents began to wonder what was up.
Hundreds
of excited hip-hop fans (many of which were co-eds within stone's
throw of
their own residences) smiled, cheered, danced as Big Boi had fun
throughout his
near hour-long set. Really, the tone of the show was one of overall frivolity
with the
mood of disbelief extending right up into the well-executed
set. Exhaled exclamations of
"This is so badass!" were far from uncommon.
And while Big Boi performed
some of his new solo
stuff, the emphasis of his show was obviously on classic Outkast tracks. He played
fantastic rendition of such staples as "Elevators" and "The Way You
Move"
(during which he was accompanied by a group of dancing SMU girls).
His
set ended
at about 10 minutes to 9 p.m. At that time, the crowd had about five minutes to
exchange
their on-the-spot reviews of the Big Boi set and express their
excitement when a
student from the organization putting on the event took the stage and
nervously
approached the microphone.
"I'm sorry," the student announced to the still-swelling crowd. "But we've been shut down."
Shock
was the prevailing attitude. It seemed that nobody believed that Girl
Talk
would not be playing. Really: Very few people evacuated the plaza and, within a
few
minutes, the expected fist pumps and chants of "BULLSHIT" were in full
effect. Some thought it was a prank, but as the minutes without music wore on,
many
more were beginning to feel cheated, robbed and disappointed.
Never mind
that it
was a free show--these people came with expectations.
Those, too, ended when a combination of the
University Park, Highland Park, and SMU police officials arrived to
ensure
that the concert would end as a result in the over 30 noise complaints
that they
had supposedly received from the surrounding neighborhoods.
While it
took over 30 minutes for the crowd to finally give up ad disperse,
things never
really got to the point where the crowd and the authority figures were
at odds.
As a matter of fact, the biggest exodus from the plaza came about 15
minutes
after the stoppage when a couple rabble-rousers hurled projectiles onto
the
stage as security was helping to clear things out. Many realized the
potential
for things to get ugly at that point and decided it time to high tail it
out of
there.
"I've never in my life been in a place more primed for a
riot," I
overheard one student say as he made his way off of the south end of
campus.
Still, rumors began to circulate that Girl Talk would indeed
play last
night. Most of the chatter implied a midnight set at Deux in Mockingbird Station. In turn, many hopeful
concert-goers
made the trek there, hoping to get a glimpse of the mash-up hero in
action.
By
midnight the club was overrun by Girl Talkers, who outnumbered the
venue's
regular constituents. Apparently, the rumor was substantiated by
opportunistic
club owners eager to get more bodies in the room. The club's staff
claimed that
Girl Talk was indeed playing and they were waiting on him to show up.
However
the artist himself put the rumors to bed as he posted a late night tweet
that
said "I don't know what deux is, I never told anyone I was playing
there, fuck
anyone who said I was."
Very definitive end to the rumors.
So
that's how the night came to a close--disappointment abounding.
But hey,
we'll
always have Big Boi.
Critics' Notebook
Personal Bias: I am
an alum
of SMU and my pride runs deep. But I have to say that the planning was a
bit
off, putting the concert in basically the only place they could have on
campus
that is within earshot of residences.
Random Note: Regardless, this bill trumped
any of the
former acts that the university has brought in recent memory. Especially
when it
comes to hip-hop, which has been previously represented by on-campus
performances while I was a student by Coolio and Tone Loc. Bravo,
Mustangs. If only for trying.
By the Way: In no way do we want you to forget that Big
Boi
played an exceptional set, punctuated by clean delivery, upbeat stage
presence,
and a genuine playfulness that we see far to seldom in the world of
music superstars.
