![]() ![]() Instead of doing the singing himself, Tyler allowed the majority of the album’s crooning to pipe in from the speakers while he danced and posed-and rapped, when required. It struck some concertgoers as odd that he wasn’t so much performing songs from IGOR as celebrating their sounds. He began with “IGOR’S THEME,” during which he did his best mannequin impression in a blond(e) wig recognizable from the “EARFQUAKE” video, and low-key concluded on “ARE WE STILL FRIENDS?” while using his final moments in the spotlight to explore every part of the stage’s space. His hour-and-a-half-plus concentrated on material from this year’s “unplaceable, genre-fusing” IGOR. The night’s main attraction was Tyler, The Creator, whose most recent work has drifted away from rap altogether. I heard Tyler fans around me griping that Jaden was a “sad boy rapper,” but the complexity and diversity of Jaden’s set quickly proved them wrong. His rendition of “K,” for instance, gracefully transformed its plaintive guitar sounds into the buzzing din of barber clippers, while dusky desert imagery from his visual work glowed out in diptych form behind him. While his most devoted disciples were the concert’s youngest demographic, his performance found a grown-up sweet spot between active and cerebral, comic and melancholy. Next up was Jaden, whose numbers clearly communicated that he’s no longer a novelty act by tapping into an ethos that was equal parts Kid Cudi, Frank Ocean and Fall Out Boy. It didn’t hurt that he also started a chant of “Fuck AB,” to confirm for Pittsburghers that they deserved better than wide receiver Antonio Brown’s toxicity. Not only did he run through some high-energy renditions of tracks like “U Say,” “Zulu Screams” and “Crew,” but he also played clips of Kendrick Lamar and Pusha T to get everyone feeling even more euphoric. Still, people danced their way to their chosen spots and audibly appreciated that GoldLink was in hype-machine mode. But due to a particularly grueling security process and an extremely long line, a lot of people-myself included-were still stuck outside the gates for the first part of his set, even though we’d been queuing up since doors opened. GoldLink, who commenced proceedings, came closest to just turning the fuck up. This was (mostly) a good thing, as it revealed a surprising level of maturity and boldness from artists willing to explore their own distinctive aesthetics rather than cater to devotees. Yet, as the evening marched on, the vibe never quite seemed to satisfy the audience. The age of attendees skewed young (the show was all-ages): middle-school, high-school and college students alike seemed to recognize that this was both the end of the summer and the closest Pittsburgh gets to a star-studded music festival. It was a beautiful night in a city that doesn’t have many of those, and the venue was all set up for outdoor mode. The crowd packed into and around Stage AE to see GoldLink, Jaden (Smith) and Tyler, The Creator was unquestionably ready to party.
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