Karla Rendon
Editor in Chief
The crowd cheered, danced and even formed a mosh pit as rapper Travi$ Scott performed for a packed house May 5 at the Fox Theater Pomona for the sixth annual LaVernapalooza concert.
Scott, along with openers hip-hop duo L.A. Leakers, hyped the crowd with energetic beats and a lighthearted and lively atmosphere.
The stage was decorated with a giant replica of Scott’s head with half of his face being that of a cyborg overseeing the audience with a dominant demeanor. Each side of the replica had silver canyons with metallic cacti bordering the set, and a DJ set rested center in front of the replica head, with an extravagant engine sitting before it. The stage decor appropriately set off an industrial tone for the concert, and Scott had the audience in a frenzy throughout his performance.
Fans bounced along to the heavy bass-songs as Scott performed crowd favorites such as “3500,” “90210” and “Mamacita” with a lively attitude.
Although his studio album tracks are heavily manipulated with autotuned vocals, Scott still gave an impressive performance without excessive computer support. The DJ did however, provide some sound support that was able to incorporate slight autotune into his vocals, but hearing Scott’s actual voice in the performance was a refreshing change from the computer-manipulated chops in his singles.
Scott’s spirited attitude was contagious, and the audience emulated his animated disposition. His energetic dancing on stage was received with enthusiasm, and attendants mirrored his intensity by grooving along despite the crowd’s compact proximity. Although the mass was tight, a few people still managed to beat the horde and crowd surf throughout the Texas rapper’s show.
During the performance of “Whole Lotta Lovin’,” a collaboration Scott made with DJ Mustard, fans raised their fists and jumped in sync with one another to the electronic tune. Scott acted as a composer to the audience, guiding the audience members to jump whenever he would.
As Scott performed one of newest songs, “Wonderful,” audience danced along to the upbeat song. The lighthearted and optimistic tune set the perfect tone for a fun evening, and Scott’s charisma on stage only added to that fun setting.
The cherry on top of the LaVernapalooza sundae was when the audience went ballistic with excitement as Scott ran across the venue to perform a brief sample of his single “Antidote” on top of a studio table. Dodging fans and making a beeline for the table that centered the venue, eager attendants rushed towards the back of the Fox Theater Pomona in an effort to get closer to Scott.
The performance concluded with Scott’s biggest single, “Antidote.” As soon as the audience heard the first lyrics, “Don’t you open up that window,” a hysteria of enthusiasm and ecstatic applause erupted, and fans excitedly danced along to the party song. Singing and rapping along to the 2015 song, the reaction was a clear indication that “Antidote” was the perfect song to end the night with.
Despite ending on a superb note, fans still pleaded for more and expressed a disappointed “Awww” when the curtains closed on stage. However, this did not discourage fans as they continued to petition for an encore.
The tenacity behind the audience’s pleas worked, as curtains opened once more for a brief encore from Scott. Rather than perform another song, the rapper opted to DJ for a few minutes before ending LaVernapalooza on a lit note.
Karla Rendon can be reached at karla.rendon@laverne.edu.
