Photo courtesy of Rich Gains.
Last night the city descended upon Reggie’s Rock Club to welcome Catfish Billy, better known as Yelawolf, for his second show in the Windy. To say that the Shady Records-signee put on a dope show would be an understatement.
I arrived to the venue a bit early and checked out the openers do soundcheck. I showed up around 6:30 and there was already a short line outside. Word has it that someone had actually been out front since one o’clock that afternoon. Remind you, doors didn’t open until eight that night. You know how most shows go on with a thin crowd until around the time the headliner goes on? Well, not last night. Reggie’s begin to pack out a few minutes after doors opened. That’s the first time I’ve ever seen that happen. DJ Stefan Ponce hit the stage and the countdown to showtime began. The first opener, G-Scott, took to the stage at approximately 9:30. Scott’s from Gary, Indiana and was definitely the lesser-known act on the bill. That didn’t stop him from putting on a dope show. After running through a track from a previous project, he was joined on stage by artists A. J. Crew & Mak Fili who assisted him with two joints from his upcoming DJ Benzi & Willy Joy-helmed project. As his set ended, the crowd began to chant his name as if he Yela himself. It was clear that the Gary representative had gained a few more fans.
Once Scott was finished, Stefan Ponce returned to the stage for a short set until Dave Coresh got ready to perform. I took this time to look around and quickly noticed that the crowd had filled in even more. Shoulder to shoulder status had been achieved. Moving around was very close to impossible. I honestly didn’t think a Yela show would be that packed, but I was definitely wrong. The crowd’s energy was something else. They were so hype. Could’ve been the alcohol or the fact that die-hard Yelawolf fans are naturally hype. I’m sure it was both. Dave hit the stage and they were loving him right away. Dave ran though a joint that I’m not too familiar with, but followed it up with the single from his last tape, “Keep It Movin'”. This is where things get a bit cloudy. As I was trying to enjoy Dave’s set, some random guy kept asking me if I wanted anything from the bar. I thought to myself, “Didn’t you hear what Dave said? Keep it moving”. That and the hilarious dance moves that I saw kept me distracted. Dave’s “Highs & Lows” caught my attention though. Dave ran through a few more joints including his latest single “Fire” before wrapping up his set.
It was almost that time. The audience was going to get what they came for. Stefan Ponce began his final set before Yela hit the stage and went total rock on us. Nirvana, Queen, Guns N’ Roses and a little Oasis had the audience singing along & waving lighters. Did I mention that his blend of Jay-Z’s “Jockin'” and Oasis’ ‘Wonderwall” was super dope? Even I joined in the sing-along. Wiz Khalifa’s “Phone Numbers” blended with the song it samples, Queen’s “We Are The Champions”, played as DJ Artime took the stage. It was that time. Chants of “YELA-WOLF!” filled the air as Artime spun Yela’s verse from “2.0 Boys”. There was a vibe that something dope was about to go down. Seriously. “Trunk Muzik” began playing & it was on.
Yela made his way on stage and immediately proceeded to rip his track to shreds. Seriously, dude is a monster. “Billy Crystal” was next up and the audience was more then ready to sing Rock City’s hook. I think this was right around the time someone passed Yela a Derrick Rose jersey out of the crowd & he put it on. Guess what happened after that? If you guessed MVP chants, you’re right. “Box Chevy” & “I Just Wanna Party” were next up, but not in that particular order. Yela even ran through “Boyz In The Woodz”, his verse from Big Boi’s “Your DJ Ain’t No DJ” and his Juelz Santana collaboration, “Mixin’ Up The Medicine”. The rest of his set consisted of “I Wish”, “Daddy’s Lambo”, “Pop The Trunk”, “Love Is Not Enough” and “Marijuana”. Of course, the audience knew EVERY word. Did I mention that Travis Barker was on the drums? Total dopeness.
Before I knew it, I got lost in the hypeness of the show & it was over. Yelawolf had taken Reggie’s to new heights. The best part of the night was the fact that everything went down without a problem. No fights, no arguments or anything of that nature. Kind of unbelievable with the amount of alcohol that was being consumed, but hey. Everyone just wanted a good time and they got a great time instead. Hell, even the owner said he liked shows like that one. All in all, last night was something you really didn’t want to miss. I can’t give you the feeling of being there personally, but I tried my best. Kick yourself if you missed out. Even if you weren’t a Yelawolf fan, you would have enjoyed it. It was just that dope. Don’t take my word for it though. Ask GLC, Vic Mensa, the good people from GWHH or the homies from WIMH. I’m pretty sure they will agree that Catfish Billy killed Reggie’s.
Salute and much appreciation to Zach Eastman and everyone else involved with such a dope event.
One of the best hip hop shows I’ve been too. Dave Coresh killed it. You could tell he’s been doing his thing for a while because he had the crow hype as if he was the main act.
There was one fight that broke out at the beginning when Yela went on. Security broke the shit up though.
Anyways, dude is sick. That was the craziest fucking show I’ve been too in a while.
*crowd
Here’s a vid of his “Pop The Trunk” performance featuring Travis Barke. Qualitys not the best but …
Here’s a vid of his “Pop The Trunk” performance featuring Travis Barke. Qualitys not the best but …
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3W-r2Dy3fAM
My man G. Scott said he works at Dunkin’ Donuts….#whenkeepinitrealgoeswrong
Hey, that was me who was there at 1pm! I was the first one there & waited around that entire time. It was an amazing show and I need to see Yelawolf again!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i4sTbzWkNiw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i4sTbzWkNiw Footage
lol i finally did it, but i need ur help with something. lol. i just bought yelawolf tiockets for the vans warped tour july 9th, 2011, in tinley park illinois, and i got 3rd row vip. im super excited, but it doesnt include backstage access. that gets me really bummed. i dont know who to ask, or what to do, but i want to meet him so bad! it would be a dream cme true! is there anything u can do for me?? serioussly, im his biggest fan. i have like everything dating back to last year on my page. please, if theres anything u can do, hit me up!! thanks buddy.
shannon zerin
5313 marshall ave
wonderlake, illinois, 60097
(815)482-9066