EARTHGANG 10/18 Review
On October 18th, the hip-hop duo EarthGang performed at Toad’s Place in New Haven, CT. The two Atlanta-based rappers, Olu and WowGr8, brought their witty lyricism and quirky energy to the stage, amping up the crowd with genre-bending, Southern-fried songs from Mirrorland, their major label debut album under J. Cole’s Dreamville.
After a hype performance from Benji, the show’s opening act, EarthGang began their set with “LaLa Challenge,” the intro to Mirrorland, hitting the audience with trippy lines (“stop the world, give it a twirl, when I move my feet, make sacred ground”) and political punches (“cause you brown don’t mean you down, cause you white don’t mean you right.”)
This technicolor energy radiated throughout EarthGang’s entire performance, as the duo encouraged the audience to dance and sing along to bangers like “Top Down” and “Proud of U.” Before breaking into a rapid fire stanza of “Proud of U,” EarthGang pumped up the crowd with a goofy chant — “GO STUPID GO DUMB GO STUPID GO DUMB!” — the silliness always bolstering their lyrical message, especially during their performance of YG & Nipsey Hussle’s “FDT (Fuck Doanld Trump)” a song that relies on the audience’s singing along of the truthful yet comedic chorus “Fuck Donald Trump!” participation
This silliness shifted slightly when EarthGang shushed the crowd for a quick meditation, a moment of silence that contextualized “This Side,” the song that followed, welcoming the audience in their musical reflection on the horrors of fame, particularly in regard to the unexpected deaths of young talent. This somber yet cathartic mood was continued with the mesmerizing r&b tune “Tripping,” featuring a clever incorporation of shekere, a West African percussion instrument made of gourd.
Even in these slower moments, EarthGang never lost track of the audience, making sure everyone stayed hype. “I am Earthgang,” EarthGang chanted with the crowd. “You are EarthGang. We are EarthGang,” a statement that blurs the line between musician and audience, establishing EarthGang as not just a hip-hop group, but a collective movement.
In fact, this inclusiveness is what made EarthGang’s talented performance into a uniquely revolutionary one. Rather than agonize over traditional concert conventions, EarthGang pulled a number of crowd members on stage for a dance-off. This interactiveness only intensified as the concert progressed. When people threw their phones on stage, Olu and WowGr8 recorded videos on their devices; after the show, instead of rushing to their tour bus, the duo stayed behind to take photos and give autographs. It’s rare to find a music group that cares just as much about the fans as it cares about their musical vision. In this sense, EarthGang’s freaky Southern rap transcends concert stages, immortalizing their legacy in an all-encompassing hug.
- Kiddest Sinke, '20