When entering the Governor’s Ball music festival in NYC, better known as Gov Ball, it is easy to feel as though you’re just one small bee among a hive of thousands. With different artists performing every hour on the hour, there is always something to do, someone to see, or somewhere to go. Popular NYC food vendors line the grounds, allowing people to choose anything from sandwiches to instagram-worthy treats. The Sunday June 3 headliners ranged from performers like Billie Eilish and Khalid to LIl Uzi Vert and Eminem, providing concertgoers with a wide variety of different music. The weather for Gov Ball usually consists of the sun shining high and 80 degrees, but for Sunday Gov Ball goers, we got lucky. With the high of about 65 and a cloudy sky, it made the large crowds and extremely squished conditions of waiting for and watching performers a lot more tolerable.
With Khalid set to perform at 4:45, crowds of fans swarmed around the Gov Ball NYC Stage, determined to get the best spots possible. Amine performed before Khalid on the same stage, and as he performed hit songs like Spice Girl and Hebejebes, the crowd continued to get more pumped.
For Anime I thought we were cramped, but I soon found out firsthand just how squished we could really be. Once Amine ended, many people (myself included) stayed at that stage to get the best view for when Khalid performed. Every minute that went by, more people pushed and shoved, all trying to get as close as possible.
Fast forward an hour, and you could feel the wave of excitement among the audience as it got closer to the performance of Khalid. Opening right on time, he first congratulated the class of 2018, recalling how he graduated from high school just two years ago in El Paso, Texas. Following his congrats, he performed “American Teen,” frequently pausing to let the audience sing the lyrics. For his hour long show, he performed popular songs like “Young Dumb and Broke,” “Lets Go,” “Saved” and “Location.” With the screen behind him constantly changing, each song brought new and eye catching graphics. “American Teen,” for example, highlighted different types of “typical” high school teenagers, allowing the audience to feel like they could relate and understand to the music even more. He also included personal information throughout the performance, talking a little bit about certain songs before he sang. Before performing “Saved,” for example, he noted it was the first song he ever wrote. Aspects like this kept the crowd engaged, and allowed the concert goers to hear more about him as an artist.
After Khalid there was about two hours of downtime for the people waiting for Lil Uzi Vert to perform. Gov Ball provided cute walls of art for pictures and a bunch of little games to play in order to pass time. When it was time for Lil Uzi Vert, fans once again squeezed and pushed to get to the front. There is no doubt that Uzi fans are some hardcore people. We were packed in like hundreds of sardines in a small can. When Uzi came on stage, the full rage and pushing began. Although extremely overwhelming at times, the jumping accompanied by massive amounts of pushing really made the Gov Ball experience real. Uzi was a little late to the stage and didn’t sing a single full song of his own. Some songs he did performed were “Dark Queen,” “XO Tour Life,” and “Bad and Boujee.” Uzi was overall well worth all the crazy pushing, and he was really good at hyping his fans up. I think it was the best part of the night. Gov Ball, you were lit.