After this year’s long winter, Wellesley students enthusiastically welcomed spring with various festivities planned for mid – to late April. Among the most anticipated events were Marathon Monday and the concert traditionally held the night before it. Despite the rainy weather, hundreds of people gathered along the street cheering on the runners in this year’s Boston Marathon. Luckily, many students were still energetic from ILoveMakonnen performing on campus the previous night. SBOG annually hosts a Spring Week in collaboration with several other organizations, and this year, “Spring Week 2k15: On Fleek” brought ILoveMakonnen to Wellesley to start off the week’s various events.
ILoveMakonnen performed on Sunday, April 19 in Tishman Commons. Quite a few Wellesley Students unfamiliar with the hip-hop industry questioned who this year’s performer was upon hearing his name; however, SBOG posted a promotional reveal video during which ILoveMakonnen’s iconic “Club Goin’ Up on a Tuesday” song played in the background. With its easily recognizable beat and lyrics, “Club goin’ up, on a Tuesday/Got your girl in the club but she choosy,” students instantly identified the hit song. ILoveMakonnen, whose real name is Makonnen Sheran, is a hip-hop/R&B artist from Los Angeles who rose to fame in the past year. After crossing paths with Mike Will Made It, a famed Atlanta-based music producer affiliated with artists such as Rihanna, 2 Chainz and Miley Cyrus, Makonnen’s career in the music industry took off. His songs have been recognized by the rapper Drake himself, who recently reached out to Makonnen to remix “Club Goin’ Up on a Tuesday.” Makonnen and Drake released a collaboration music video of the remix, which brought instant fame to the underdog rapper/singer. Bringing ILoveMakonnen to kick off Spring Week was a great way to hype up the students and celebrate the gradual end of the semester.
On the night of the event, students gathered in Tishman ready to welcome ILoveMakonnen to the stage. Greeted with screams, cheers and dancing, Makonnen performed one of his lesser known songs to begin the concert. After a few songs, he sang another one of his hits, called “I Don’t Sell Molly No More,” eliciting enthusiastic cheers from the crowd, many of whom were singing the familiar lyrics to the song. Though unfamiliar to most of his music, many people seemed to be enjoying his performance — truly, we all were waiting for one song, which he performed at the end. As the concert came to an end, we heard the familiar electronic introduction to his most famous song, and everyone went wild with anticipation. He pumped up the crowd by raising his hands and started to sing “Tuesday.” Clearly the highlight of the night, “Tuesday” had people singing every lyric and dancing to every beat of the song. The three minutes weren’t enough but successfully concluded the night.
Despite the concert taking place the night before the marathon, Wellesley still managed to wake up early the next morning to offer their support for the runners in the Scream Tunnel. Students and families enjoyed a barbecue held in the Lulu and attended Marathon Monday performances by Krill, Frankie Cosmos and Squirrel Flower. SBOG, in collaboration with WZLY, hosted this concert with the indie/alternative bands performing music very different from that of the night before. To conclude Spring Week, Ryan Hemsworth, an electronic DJ/ producer, and Rae Sremmurd, a hip-hop artist, will play to celebrate the end of spring semester classes with a concert in Alumnae Hall, Friday, May 8.
Michelle Lee ‘17 is the Arts Editor studying English and Art History. In her free time you can find her at the museum, watching ‘50s movies, listening to classic rock, or helping her sisters survive high school. She can be reached at mlee6@wellesley.edu.
Photo Courtesy of iLoveMakonnen
