I stood in the Armory – baffled. My foot was tapping, my head was bobbing – I was vibing.
I had to do it – I had to yield my assumptions and admit I was wrong.
Wiz Khalifa and Company were in fact Lit this Monday night – and I can’t wait to tell you all about it. Wiz was the headliner, but the Good Trip Tour was packing much more heat than that, with the likes of Chevy Woods, Smoke DZA, BERNER, and Joey Bada$$. Where to begin?
I’ll be blunt – I was having a rather cliche Monday, slogging through emails and the works, when I got the message that I would be able to attend the show; green light.
I did my usual review of the schedule, sent some texts, and ordered my Uber. .
My ride pulled up a few blocks away from the venue in downtown Minneapolis. Needing to run an errand on the way to the show, I checked out with the cashier at the little convenience store and started hiking over to the concert. It was chilly, and the wind-tunnels between buildings downtown never really get old – but no matter how old I get, I feel like a little kid walking those streets after sunset.
I got to the intersection of 5th and 6th, when I looked up to see a line of people waiting to get into the show. I got into the ticket line, got my papers, and nodded to the guy banging his drums outside the door as I walked inside. An ID check and a pat-down later, I was then in a crowd of several thousand people – with my jaw dragging behind me on the floor.
Where the hell was I? But – Monday night?
The crowd didn’t care – this place was more lit than a Christmas tree in December.
Chevy Woods was the first act of the night. Reigning from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania – Chevy has been affiliated with Wiz for years and has been rapping since 2002. Chevy is known for his passionate style and story, and that energy was felt on stage almost immediately. Big Woods Season is the most recent mixtape drop from Woods, coming back in 2021 – but that’s literally one of over a dozen options to start with if you want to check him out.
Coming up next we had Smoke DZA, and the Harlem, NY rapper wasted no time making his chill flow and smoker vibes blatantly clear to the audience. His music and overall stage presence brought me to realize that this was in fact a 4/20 enthused crowd – people had them, and had smoked them. Smoke’s most recent piece was actually a collab album with Wiz, Girl Talk, and Big K.R.I.T. and came out just back in 2022. DZA is often related to Jay-Z and Notorious B.I.G. – so check ’em out.
BERNER took to the stage next and he shocked me left and right – whether it was the fact he’s dropped over 40 albums already, or how he’s the lead thinker behind a common cannabis product, Cookies. I swear, half the crowd was wearing Cookies branded clothing; talk about lifestyle branding as that same brand was felt in his lyrics and music on stage. His most recent album dropped in 2022 and is titled From Seed to Sale – it also reached No. 20 on the US Billboard 200.
Joey Bada$$ was the best part of the night for me, personally, as I was shocked by his intense lyrics and ability to connect with the crowd. I was shocked to be reminded, in person, that the 2017 hits “Devastated” and “Temptation” were both from the same guy that was now on stage before me. I found myself bobbing along to most of his rhymes throughout the set and was saving tracks of his on Spotify left and right.
The night came to a climax as Wiz Khalifa finally took to the stage; the crowd went absolutely nuts. It was 10:00 PM on a Monday night, and I swear it felt like a New Year’s Eve party. He had an iconic outfit on, no doubt – a tie-die shirt, slick hat, and rocking his hair down around his shoulders; it was time. He came out bopping “Roll Up” and over the course of the night, he played all of his essential hits, giving us all a huge trip of nostalgia going back to almost 13 years ago. Our past came back to us via a pleasant trip and familiar jams and tunes, and the rest of the night was a euphoric blur.
I’d implore anyone who is a fan of chill vibes or rap as a whole to check out Wiz the next time he comes to town. Not only was his show a great performance on his own, but the cast of supporting acts made it all the more memorable and worth the trips.
