More than 13,000 people bounced up and down for four hours at the Carrier Dome on Friday to the tunes of Jon Bellion [15], Chance the Rapper [16] and The Chainsmokers [17]. Fans were excited for the concert, pushing their way as close to the barrier between the stage and audience before any performer was even on stage. The first and second tiers weren’t quiet either; tons of fans were buzzing, eager to jam to their favorite songs.
Bellion was the first to take the Carrier Dome, with the help of performer Blaque Keyz [18]. Both were moving and grooving, and their energy spread to the audience. Performing songs such as “Superman, The Gift & The Curse [19],” “Luxury [20],” and a unique-sounding cover of The Police's “Roxanne.” Bellion, whose debut album “The Human Condition” will be released on June 10, used different instruments for every song; whether it was the sample pad, a slight autotune or even banging away at the bongos. Bellion and his crew did a marvelous job getting the Carrier Dome ready for the headliners, while impressing new listeners with their sound and energy.
Next came Chance the Rapper, backed by his band The Social Experiment. His lyrical and physical flow made his performance a spectacle to watch. Three songs in, Chance introduced himself with a simple “Hi, I’m Chance the Rapper, from Chicago, Illinois.” Following repeated sentiments of how he loves Syracuse, he asked the crowd, “Was this a good show?” Most of his setlist revolved around his second mixtape “Acid Rap [21],” but he also played a throwback song to his debut mixtape “10 Days [22],” with the song “Brain Cells [23],” as well as a performance of Kanye West's "Ultralight Beam," which he co-wrote and appeared on. Some of the tracks he performed were sensual, but many also dealt with major social issues, like “Need to Know [24],” a song Chance collaborated on with Macklemore and Ryan Lewis. The song deals with the oxycodone problem in today’s developing generation and dealing with addiction in daily life. Chance received an extraordinary embrace from the Cuse crowd, earning an encore after his closing song.
“Bon Iver, KiD CuDi, and Blink-182 are our three biggest musical influences,” said Drew Taggart, one half of The Chainsmokers. “And Jeff Bezos," Chainsmokers' Alex Pall said jokingly about Amazon's CEO.
On April Fools' Day, an SU student posted a prank article which claimed The Chainsmokers would be headlining Block Party this year. It turned out to not be a prank after all.
“I went to Syracuse, so all my friends were hitting us up asking if we were actually playing. We didn’t tell anybody because they were gonna find out in two days anyway," Pall said.
“We were supposed to play Juice Jam this year, but they wanted us [to play] before Oliver Heldens, so we said [no]”, said Taggart.
The Chainsmokers had the Carrier Dome in a frenzy, playing hits like “New York City [25]” and “Don’t Let Me Down [26].” Many in the stadium were dancing and having a blast.
“I graduated from 'Cuse four years ago,” Taggart screamed to his fans. "We started making all The Chainsmokers' music at Syracuse, for real.”
He and Pall repeatedly told the Dome to “Turn the f*** up” before playing ‘drops.' The energetic aura coupled with a mesmerizing light show wrapped up what was a memorable night.
In the end, thousands went home with genuine happiness in their expressions, a signal of a job well done by three very talented performers.
