At this year's Solarity (the biggest Oberlin concert of the semester), I was able to see Kota the Friend perform live.
Kota the Friend is a rapper who has received a lot of buzz lately. He has millions of hits on streaming services, and he is consistent in the work that he puts out. I actually enjoy a lot of his music, so I was definitely interested in what he would be able to do in front of a live audience.
Luckily, Kota delivered a very solid and enjoyable performance. Everyone seemed to love it.
He performed some of his most popular songs such as "Colorado" and "Alkaline," and the crowd actually enjoyed the songs. Kota the Friend's style is more of a chill and melodic vibe, which may be deemed as "boring" to some, but I don't mind it at all. Everyone doesn't have to bring a Waka Flocka Flame level of energy to their music. (Google his song "Hard in da Paint" if you don't know what I mean by that level of energy.)
Considering that Solarity is an event that usually has people turning up to more upbeat music, it was nice to experience a nice switch-up. Kota has more of a chill vibe, which contrasted his following act, Leikeli47, who has more of an upbeat style. I wasn't able to stay for Leikeli47, but I heard that she also did her thing on the stage last night. Oberlin students usually have a really good ear for music, so I trust my Obie friends on this one!
Last night was the last time I ever experienced a Winter Solarity event, and I left really satisfied with what I saw.
I have had the pleasure of seeing many talented artists perform during Solarity, from Saba to Kota the Friend. I definitely appreciate everyone involved with the process of booking these artists, because Lord knows it can't be easy. It takes a lot of hard work to bring quality artists to a college campus. Luckily, once again, our student organizations came through for the rest of the student body. Oberlin isn't just bringing anybody to headline Solarity. We usually try our best to ensure that we get somebody with at least a little bit of star power. With acts like Saba, Lizzo, and Metro Boomin performing here in the past, it seems like this school doesn't plan on slowing down on having some lit artists perform for us. After all, Oberlin is known as a music school, so it also makes sense for us to consistently see some really great musical guests from time to time.
I've seen some really popular and gifted rappers during my time at Oberlin, and that goes beyond Solarity. With this being the last time I ever experience this event at the end of the fall semester, things seem a little bittersweet.
Luckily for me, I have one more Solarity to experience in the spring before graduation.
I don't know who Oberlin is booking next, but hopefully, this next artist will be able to help my senior class go out with a bang. With graduation inching closer and closer, I think that it is important for the school to bring in somebody really special. Somebody who matches or even outperforms Kota the Friend would be ideal, because he was really good.
Hopefully, we will be able to experience something legendary for the last Solarity of my life... Wow. That actually just hit me. Anyways, Kota the Friend was great, and I hope that he comes back. He probably won't return before I graduate, but who knows? If he doesn't, then I'm not even mad about it. I appreciated his performance, and I'm beyond excited to see who comes to Solarity next semester!
