Jakhari Smith / Dre T / Connor Chavez / Angelite / Beatnik Scum - 05.23.23
Alright first off, happy damn birthday to Jakhari Smith - we’re all so grateful to have been at this show for such a special night! This was most certainly the most fun show we’ve gotten to be apart of and we want to direct the attention to the incredible artists who made this night happen! Starting off the show, we had Dre T, a local rapper / producer who’s set kickstarted the crowd’s energy!! His track “Keep That Sh*t Goin,” was the perfect song to start the show with! 😂 Up next we had our boy Connor Chavez performing a solo set comprised of just vocals and guitar! Luckily for us, Connor moves around the fretboard like he has 3 arms and has an absolutely incredible voice! His rendition of “Georgia On My Mind” was so fun to listen and sing along to! After his set, he took a break to give a speech dedicated to Jakhari - his long time friend - wishing his a happy birthday and expressing pride in how far Jakhari had come as an artist. Up next was the coveted Angelite! The 8 (yea 8) piece group took the stage and killed it as per usual - playing tracks such as “Movie”, as well as some new originals - featuring different members of the group. I still think its so impressive to watch them play a song, then immediately switch instruments around and play a song with an entirely different vibe and still kill! Up next, oh boy, up next was Beatnik Scum!!! No bullshit this was some of the best live hip hop Ive ever heard - so much so I had to go buy a shirt to support. Homie had the flow, the catchy choruses, AND the crazy beats. He had the crowd going so wild I was watching people adlib live for him!! His tracks “I WaNNa” and “Richochet” went absolutely insane (I wish I could remember the names of more tracks honestly Id put them on too lmao). And finally, the moment everyone had all been waiting for - Jakhari Smith performing his brand new album “Reflections Vol. 2!” My boy came to the stage with an amazing energy that kept up throughout the whole set! His ability to tell stories through music is incredible; I learned a lot about Jakhari just from his music. He had so many features on this record - including Connor Chavez, members of French 57, The Philharmonik, Dogpatch, Harlequin, and many more! Some of my favorite tracks from the set were “Another Level,” “Get Up,” and “Free Yourself.” Seeing the amount of love the crowd had for Jakhari during this night was an inspiration. I loved watching his homies jump up on stage with him, acting a part of the performance. I loved seeing the amount of people waiting to greet him after his set. I loved being a part of that night and I just wanna say again, Happy Birthday Jakhari - we’re all excited to see you grow!
