Under a haze of purple light, Houston-born rapper Don Toliver stunned Chicago during his show on November 18. Bright, flashing cell phone lights lit up the UIC pavilion as he strolled out to “KRYPTONITE” and hypnotized Chicago fans for nearly two hours. From the first bass drop to the final note, the night unfolded like a dream, pulling everyone into Toliver’s world.
Before Toliver took the stage, three openers built excitement for what his performance could hold. Rappers Molly Santana, Monaleo, and Ski Mask the Slump God took the stage to fill a two-hour time slot until Toliver performed at 9:30 p.m.
“I almost didn’t end up going [to the concert], but I’m glad I did. Seeing [Toliver] made up for long block the next day,” sophomore Landry Silvers said.
Molly Santana, a rapper from Los Angeles, started the show. Racking up 225,000 monthly listeners on Spotify, Santana is a lesser-known rap artist. She brought great energy to the stage and ended her set with a tribute to Chicago native rapper Chief Keef as she played “Save Me.”
Some were critical of Santana’s performance. Sophomore Kavina Aggarwal, who attended the show, said, “I think that they used Molly Santana’s performance as a filler and didn’t put a lot of effort into it, so the crowd wasn’t feeling it as much.”
However, as an avid listener of Chief Keef and a Chicago resident, I was excited to see the acknowledgement that Santana gave to Chicago’s musical scene.
Monaleo took the stage after Santana, and the crowd became increasingly energetic. Singing along to songs such as the TikTok-popularized “Don Who Leo” and “Beating Down Yo Block,” Monaleo provided a lively environment for attendees to jam out.
Finally, Ski Mask the Slump God finished off the list of openers. The crowd was ecstatic and began to mosh to songs such as “COOLEST MONKEY IN THE JUNGLE” and “Faucet Failure.”
Sophomore Myla Robertson said, “When Ski Mask came on, everyone went crazy, and I feel like that’s when the concert really started.”
When Toliver finally came out, he came out strong with high energy and exciting songs off of his newest album “HARDSTONE PSYCHO,” such as “KRYPTONITE,” and “TORE UP,” which had the crowd screaming along to every single lyric. Electric energy shot through the room as Toliver’s performance was accompanied by incredibly talented guitarist Spikes, along with colorful lighting and sharp smoke machines.
After Toliver played four songs off of his newest album, he shifted focus to his older music, playing songs off of “Heaven or Hell,” and “JACKBOYS.” A personal favorite was “Had Enough” featuring Quavo and Offset. “Had Enough” had the crowd in touch with their emotional side, as it was a great cool-down period after the intense moshing.
Following the brief pause in momentum, Toliver kicked the energy back up with a great six-song run: “WHAT TO DO?,” “FIELD TRIP,” “No Pole,” “NEW DROP,” “CAN’T SAY,” and “ATTITUDE,” which displayed Toliver’s growth throughout his musical career and brought nostalgia for many listeners in the crowd.
“I’ve been listening to Don Toliver since 2021, so it was really cool to hear all of his old songs live,” Myla said.
As the show progressed, the visuals that Toliver incorporated into his show grew. Accompanied by a person dressed up as an alien, he engaged with the audience and got everyone moving more. Later into the show, Toliver welcomed two motorcyclists to perform numerous tricks on stage.
As a special surprise, Don Toliver played a crowd-recommended song: “FE!N” by Travis Scott and Playboi Carti. At this point, the energy was at an all-time high.
“I really liked his concert a lot because I love his music, but also the crowd was super engaged the whole time,” Kavina said. “Everyone that attended wanted to be there, and it was such high energy the entire time.”
To end the show, Toliver played “After Party,” another popular throwback, and finished strong with “TORE UP” for a second time.
Myla said, “Honestly, it was probably the best night of this whole year. His energy was unreal, and he was having the same amount of fun we were.”
