The solstice: first concert of the year

The show began with the gifted Gilda accompanied by Sapa Thai, Max, and Riley Shmedeman. Gilda performed three songs: “Pink Rosé," “as above, so below," and “darling”. Inexperience wasn’t a problem for her, as she has performed countless times including at the venue The Mint. This was apparent from her confidence throughout her set. “It’s always more exciting than nerve wracking for me...

Kayla Pincus, unlike most other artists performing that day, sang a mixture of her own songs and covers. This showed her true versatility, as she shifted from her more upbeat, unreleased single “In the way of the wind” to Amy Winehouse’s “Love is a losing game.” For one out of the three songs, she also played her own guitar instrumental. Her set was very interactive: Her last song, "Big Yellow Taxi...

For George Gomez, performing isn’t something he’s quite yet used to. This was only his second big performance ever, the first being the AMPA/BSU talent show the day prior. George described his performance using the phrase “Fake it til you make it.” He was nervous and overwhelmed due to last minute changes in his set list and the unexpected inability to make it to the show from those he origi...

Ayla Claire had a major obstacle this day: She had a cold and apparently “Couldn’t even speak clearly that morning.” Despite this, her performance was great and the creativity of her music made up for anything possibly lacking that day. Ayla sang two songs that she wrote:  “Hide it” and “Worth it, right?” Interestingly enough, the second song is a fictional story about a murderer who suff...

Kayla Pincus, another performer, described Foreign Homes' energy at the concert perfectly. “I feel like when I listen to his music it's like a soundtrack to my life.” She especially enjoyed the guitar which she described to be “so soothing.” I, and his 25.7k+ Spotify listeners can surely confirm the comforting feeling emitted from his music is a big part of the appeal. Foreign Homes has gaine...

Kenzo was a fortunate last minute addition to the show and the first artist in the second half after intermission. His performance separated him from the others as his set was a collection of unique beats. Despite being different from the rest, his performance was equally enjoyed by the audience. He made the patio feel more like a rave than a traditional concert, which brought a lot of energy from th...

Grupo CT, composed of two members, Anthony Lopez and Chris Martinez, also aimed to, in their own words,  “change it up a bit with Mexican style music.” They sang in Spanish while playing their own guitars, entertaining the crowd with a collection of calming and upbeat songs. Despite English speakers not understanding the lyrics to the song, their chill voices were enough to keep everyone engaged...

Alexander was the first rapper to perform, and he set a high standard for those who followed. If the performance was summed up to one word it’d be groovy. At least according to Kayla Pincus, who loved that “The song was very groovy.” She referred to him as an all-around talented person. It’s important to acknowledge how much an outfit can change a concert, it can make or break it sometimes....

The first thing to stand out about this artist was his very fun energy. He was the first to encourage people to gather around the stage and easily engaged and interacted with the audience. Surprisingly, he confessed that his confidence at first was only a facade. “I was nervous going into it, but the moment I stepped on stage I felt like everything, like all my fears, disappeared.”  Discoverin...

Ksupreme won 3rd place in the AMPA/BSU talent show the day prior with his rapping skills and brought this winners’ mentality to the solstice. He only performed one song, but in that one song, his stage presence was undeniably strong even without speaking directly to the audience beyond introductions. His performance lit up many’s faces with excitement, including a student who proclaimed “He ...

To say people were excited to see Swandive would be an understatement. Sophia Anderson, the person responsible for recording the performances, can attest to this. She recalled, “I was scared to film during Swandive ‘cause I thought people were gonna push me over.” This band is considerably experienced and that was evident from the start. They enjoyed themselves and everything seemed to come n...