By Jordan Galan
Correspondent
Since the pandemic, on-campus events have been limited to what is acceptable within the stringent covid guidelines. With restrictions finally being loosened, allowing a vast amount of students to attend for free as long as masks were worn, College Union Board (CUB) seized the opportunity to organize a concert to bring life back into the student body. Tuesday, Aug. 31 at 8 p.m., the Brower Student Center was electrified by HDBeenDope’s stunning performance with ISO Indie’s exciting opening that left the crowd wanting more.
From the very start, students were flooding in, impatient for the event to begin. As soon as ISO Indies stepped foot on that stage students knew they were in for something special. With the crowd starting to get into the infectious groove of head nods and fist pumping, everyone knew it was time to finally bring out the main event, HDBeenDope himself.
“When he started rapping it really just brought the crowd alive,” said Kiandry Minaya, a freshman biology major. Minaya is no stranger to being at big concerts and crowded events. Back in his hometown Patterson, New Jersey, concerts are common and in large variety. Artists always arise from the shadows to get a taste of the coveted big stage, blinding lights and the nonstop roar of the audience below. However, HDBeenDope’s concert brought something different from other artist’s concerts.
“I liked his flow a lot, I'm going to be honest,” Minaya said. “His flow was pretty solid, and he was able to be extremely versatile with his flow. He went from soft to high. He was also preaching in the middle of his concert — he's speaking to the people, he's not just rapping to them, he's speaking to them.”
Not only did HDBeenDope exuberate such skill in his performance, but he had a way of making the concert a personal experience for everyone there. As an artist, HDBeenDope not only puts a lot of thought and effort into his work, but he is also extremely invested in each and every type of audience member he encounters in every one of his shows.
HDBeenDope said that, on his tour with Portugal the Man, he was immersed by a multitude of different people at each one of their shows they performed. Crowds ranging from individuals aged 13 to 60 gave him a chance to really understand and adapt to the people around him.
“Talking about crowds who don’t care is the ultimate test — it’s always fun for me,” HDBeenDope said. “The challenges (are) how I am going to get people engaged. When it’s a younger crowd, you know what they are going for. They just want to be hyped up. But when you are on tour, Portugal has 13 to 60. An older lady came up to me after a show and told me that she felt the music, but to be able to get someone that age — to have to make sure she enjoys it, and 18 and younger enjoy it, it forces you to learn different ways to perform and engage people, and I can’t thank them enough for that.”
Being a performer is more than just the content of your music — it’s the way you deliver it to others that sets one artist apart from another.
Performers come in wide varieties, but the ones that succeed are the ones who are willing to learn and adapt from other places that may be outside their level of expertise.
“Trust yourself, always be open to learning, just intaking different stuff. It’s very easy to stay in your box,” HDBeenDope said. “It’s like if you are trying to be in a certain world you kind of just study within that world. It’s understanding there is so much in different worlds that can positively affect whatever you are doing.”
