The hip-hop festival officially kicked off its first day of events on Friday night, following non-performance headlining performances by Kanye and Ty Dolla $ign at Rolling Loud on Thursday (March 14). Nicki Minaj took the stage for an electrifying headlining performance, bringing Gag City to SoFi Arena in Los Angeles on March 15 for a nearly hour-long performance.
Minaj is currently on the Pink Friday 2 world tour, and she recorded her only Los Angeles show on the trek at Rolling Loud. The show was impassioned, smooth and full of hits, condensing her arena-sized performance into a tense hour-long performance.
She took the stage at 9:40pm to welcome the packed crowd to Gag City and kept the banter to a minimum – she only addressed the audience once or twice – but let the parade of songs speak for themselves, Added choreography and costume changes served as a reminder of why she deserves a place in the Hip Hop Hall of Fame. For anyone in attendance, there was probably more to it than that: Minaj once again proved she’s a top pop star to be reckoned with and hasn’t shown any signs of rust since her debut album in 2010.
Barbz has been keeping a close eye on the set list during her recently launched tour, and there may have been a few omissions, but her pared-down set plays like a mix of her biggest hits mixed with the standout material from her recent releases. She appears at the top of a flight of stairs in “I’m the Best” and meets “Barbie Danger” and “FTCU”. Flames rose behind her during brief snippets of “Beep Beep” and “Beez in the Trap,” before a costume change brought “Chun-Li” and “Ruby Red da Sleeze.” She hasn’t forgotten her roots — standout songs include “Super Bass,” “Roman’s Revenge” and her signature verse on Kanye West’s “Monster” (West, of course, “headlined” her the night before , their collaboration on “New Body” for West’s “Vultures” may have ruled out any surprises from West, despite recent disagreements over releases).
Fans who haven’t been following her recent performances might be shocked that she included “Starships,” one of the most popular songs in her discography, on the setlist. After all, she regularly incorporates it into her Pink Friday 2 tour. But during a New Year’s Eve show in Miami, she shut down the DJ who was lining up the RedOne-produced song, claiming she was no longer performing the song. Her instincts may be wrong. It was one of the highlights of the scene – fierce, sharp, bright, a callback to the EDM pop of the 2010s. The crowd shook and heaved like the ground during an earthquake. Despite her hesitation, Starship holds a huge place in fans’ hearts. It was a triumphant glissando to her last song, “Everybody,” that concertgoers left singing.
Before Gag City became the night’s only destination, PartyNextDoor (aka Jahron Anthony Brathwaite, the first artist signed to Drake’s OVO Sound label) drew the biggest crowd of the night, bringing out the nostalgia of all his R&B classics exhibit. Lovers in the crowd. With the Canadian singer only recently starting to perform more consistently, fueled by the impending release of his fourth studio record, there was a palpable sense of urgency for the fans who showed up for the album and the parties. Supported by a team of background dancers and a three-piece orchestra, the singer-songwriter lived up to expectations with a seamless setlist that included “Come and See Me,” “Persian Rugs,” “Break From Toronto,” and “Sex on.” the Beach” and even a cover of Rihanna’s “Work,” which he co-wrote.
PartyNextDoor on the GoPuff stage at Rolling Loud on March 15, 2024 in Inglewood, California. (Source: Jordan K Knight)
Early jaw-dropping hip-hop hits include Sexyy Red and Jeleel! Festival-goers are asked to arrive early as admission lines become more unbearable in the evening. At one point, general admission was closed an hour before Minaj was set to take the stage. Some attendees were seen scaling a fence just feet away from security personnel, who ignored the situation. But internally, Rolling Loud is a well-oiled machine.
Sexyy Red took the Ethika stage at Rolling Loud on March 15, 2024 in Inglewood, California. (Source: Daniela Alaviie)
YG and Tyga’s joint album was a hit with West Coasters who loved hip-hop from 2010-2014: “The Motto,” “Rack City,” “Faded” and “Toot It & Boot It,” as well as covers of hit local rap songs The singer’s songs, such as Ambjaay’s “Uno,” set the tone for the evening. YG also invited special guest Saweetie to perform a flirty performance of “Richtivities.”
Itchy eyes photos
On March 15, 2024, YG and Saweetie shared the Ethika stage at the Rolling Loud stage in Inglewood, California. (Source: Mickey Pierre-Louis)
The only glaring absence from this line-up is the departure of Mexican music hitmaker Junior H, who along with Natanael Cano was invited as a special guest, but not at the festival It was removed a few days ago. Jimmy Humilde, CEO of both artists’ Rancho Humilde label, took to social media to express his displeasure with Rolling Loud, claiming the festival was canceled without any notice. He also claimed that Rolling Loud was “racist” for exploiting his artists for sales and then forcibly removing them from the lineup. The festival released a statement to Rolling Stone and later lashed out on social media, claiming the two artists were cut from the lineup because of issues with Cano’s visa and that Junior violated his radius contract – a clause that protects festivals from artists hosting multiple shows so as not to compete for ticket revenue. Hummeld denied these claims and the festival had no further comment.
On the contrary, the representative of this genre is the 17-year-old Chino Pacas, who gave an energetic performance with all his strength and joined forces with Gabito Ballesteros Premiered an unreleased song.
Chino Pacas on the GoPuff stage at Rolling Loud on March 15, 2024 in Inglewood, California. (Source: Ava Lamb)
In addition to the action on stage, SoFi Arena’s mostly concrete grounds are dotted with sponsorship booths and endless activities ranging from karaoke to a skate park. Power 106 chose to play Latin and accessible hip-hop hits, while other DJs occasionally entertained visitors with merch giveaways and bouncy trap beats. One of the most enjoyable parts of the festival was also witnessing how attendees dressed—Nikki Stein’s was easily identifiable—and they came in droves wearing hot and neon pinks.
The Rolling Loud Festival runs through March 17 and will feature performances from heavyweights such as Post Malone, Metro Boomin and Future.
