Soundset 2018: The Round-Up

It was clear from the line up that Soundset 2018 was going to be another special day. With the likes of Erykah Badu, Tyler, the Creator, and Logic, there was something for everyone. Not even the 96-degree heat could weaken our spirits as we headed toward Minnesota State Fairgrounds for a day of music, art, skaters, and cars.

Pell

Pell started our day on the South Stage (one of two main stages) who caught the attention of a relatively small but enthusiastic crowd, latching onto his flow and willing to vibe to a new name. With J.I.D watching from the viewing platform before his own set, and the crowd knowing some of his bigger hits like "Throwback," it was a good energy to kick off with.

Bugus

Matt: After listening to the Soundset Spotify playlist in preparation for the festival, I became a fan of Bugus who was up next after Pell across the festival grounds. I quickly ran over there to catch his performance and was glad I did. His excitement to be at the festival transferred to the crowd that had new and old fans jumping up and down.

Grieves

Matt: I quickly ran back across the festival grounds to watch Grieves who has been one of my favorite artists to see live since I saw him in Wisconsin in 2010. He brought a lot of energy to the main stage along with friendly smiles.

J.I.D

One of Dreamville’s prodigal sons, J.I.D was on the smaller Atmosphere and Friends Stage, but even with the fairly early set time, the crowd was sizeable. He gave his fans a performance worthy of a larger stage, using all of the space, slowly peeling off layers of clothing, and interacting with the audience on a personal level. You can tell he’s been touring pretty much non-stop, transitioning with ease between tracks like Never, EdEddnEddy, and 8701. Stopping just before his scheduled set end time to catch Jaden Smith on the main stage, who can blame him.

Jaden Smith

This was my first time seeing Jaden Smith live and I had mixed feelings. On the one hand, he is a natural performer. Doing his now famous moonwalk across stage, jumping around and holding a presence far larger than his frame, he’s really fun to watch. However, he tends to only rap about half of his lyrics, probably due to all the jumping. I appreciate live performances shouldn’t just sound like a recorded track, but I would have preferred to hear a little bit more of his voice in the mic, even if that meant a little less ‘performing’.

Prof

Matt: Out of all the performances over the years, Prof always seems to steal the show with some kind of stunt. This year was no different. After a wild performance on stage, the Rhymesayers artist took three inflatable pool toys to the crowd and finished his performance with the fans.

Evidence

Matt: I was too familiar with Evidence before Soundset but I have heard a lot of great things about him and his music over the past year so I decided to go check out his set. I'm sure glad I did. He big smile instantly had the crowd engaged from the second he took the stage until he stepped off. Also, this dude can rap! We were able to catch up with him before his set so check back in a few days for our interview.

Russ

Watching Russ from the viewing platform, he had the crowd (mainly the girls) in a trance. Not a big fan of his persona, I wasn’t planning on watching more than a few songs, but I caught myself staying for most of his set. He has a better than decent singing voice, making his singing/rap tracks pretty catchy, with his confidence/arrogance, rounding off a polished performance.

Wu Tang Clan

One of the highlights of the day was undoubtedly Wu Tang Clan’s set. All 9 surviving members showed up for the occasion, starting with Bring Da Ruckus, this is where you could tell who was a real hip-hop head. With some fans around me rapping every word, it was good to know they weren’t only playing to kids who came to see Migos. After getting into their rhythm, Wu Tang played their hour-long set with the professionalism that comes with being rap legends, albeit some members’ voices were clearer than others. Glimpsing them before and after their set backstage, it was nice to see how accommodating they were of fan photos, especially for kids (“Wu Tang is for the children”).

Erykah Badu

Erykah Badu occupied the same stage as Lauryn Hill did last year, which had a nice continuity for anyone who remembered. She began with Hello, but unless you were a die-hard fan, this was a little hard to get excited about. She gained momentum and took off her signature hat, making her a little more accessible to the audience. Shouting out Andre 3000’s birthday at every opportunity, Badu continued to bring the soul with her incredible band. So much so that because she a little late, but also overran, they had to cut her mic to end the set. Imagine being the person to cut Erykah Badu’s mic...

Tyler, the Creator

The set I was most looking forward to did not disappoint. Tyler, the Creator appeared in a matching hi-vis vest and shorts, which looked suitably shocking against the mostly black staging. Giving every ounce of energy in his body, I was fully immersed in his Flower Boy world for an hour. Performing a fair number of tracks from the 2017 album, as well as a handful of older ones, he used the two-tier stage to his advantage, giving equal measure of lyrical and physical performance. A welcome surprise (maybe to him as well?) was Erykah Badu singing Kali Uchis’s part in "See You Again." It was a beautiful ending to the leopard-spotted artist’s set.

Atmosphere

Matt: If it wasn't for Atmosphere, there probably wouldn't be a Soundset. They are also one of my favorite duos in hip-hop so there was no way that I was missing their set. Starting with fan favorites like "God Loves Ugly" Atmosphere had the entire crowd chanting every word including myself. It was only right to give them their own Atmosphere & Friends stage.

Logic

Matt: With Logic as the headliner, I thought my first encounter with him would be when he stepped on the main stage but it was actually the night before at the Soundset pre-party. I ended up next to him at the bar before he went into the crowd and danced the night away. Fast forward 24 hours and Logic is headlining the largest (30,000+ people) one-day hip-hop festival in the world. He has come a long way since he first performed at Soundset back in 2015 and was sixth from the headlining spot. His positive and peaceful message spread across the festival and left everyone leaving with a smile on their face.

Thankful to the clouds blocking the scorching sun for most of the day, the 11th Soundset was a resounding success. Maybe it’s because it’s in the Midwest, but I was struck this year even more than the last at the positivity and warmth from everyone there (aside from the odd security guard on a power trip). As Soundset is able to pull bigger and better artists every year, it still always represents local talent in all its forms. As long as they hold onto this proprietary mix, they’ve got a festival formula that works.