Hoodie Allen’s tour lives up to the hype

THE HYPE TOUR COMES TO DENVER

Hoodie Allen, along with Luke Christopher and Myles Parrish, took the stage on Oct. 20 during their stop in Denver on The Hype Tour. Most musicians shy away from their audience by keeping contact with their fans to a bare minimum, but Hoodie Allen takes the opposite approach. Known for his flamboyant stage antics, Hoodie eagerly incorporated his fans into his own performance.

Hoodie launched into his song “Sushi” which was his most theatrical performance of the night. Toward the end of the song, he hurled 100-dollar bills into the audience—fake, of course. The dramatic gesture was well received, getting the already enthusiastic crowd even more delighted. According to the Brooklyn-born rapper, Denver was the loudest, most interactive, and energetic city he has performed in this tour.

Regardless of whether people were standing in the very front or the very back, Hoodie made it a priority to interact with everyone at the concert. During “Champagne and Pools,” the pop-rapper made his way to the back of the Gothic Theatre, where there was a small platform stationed among the crowd, allowing people even all the way in the back to be up close to him. Hoodie Allen’s penchant for audience participation exceeded what most musicians opt for. Mid-way through his set, he brought up one lucky girl on stage and sang an improvised song about her. By interacting and talking to the crowd between every song, it became clear that Hoodie Allen cared a lot about his fan base, ensuring every person would get their money’s worth.

The last few songs Hoodie Allen performed toward the end of the concert shifted away from his new album to popular tracks that the band enjoyed playing and that the audience enjoyed hearing. Though the live quality of the song “All About It” could have sounded better, the crowd’s team effort to sing Ed Sheeran’s part and Hoodie rapping the rest of the song made the performance memorable. The crowd’s energy from start to finish was unwavering.

Incorporating Ben E. King, Hoodie Allen showed off his competence as a singer in “Stand By Me.” As a pop-rapper, Hoodie’s vocals are often overlooked. Though in “Stand By Me,” along with “Two Lips,” the crowd was gifted with a range of genres and vocal styles. The night shifted back and forth between upbeat rap songs that had the crowd pumping their hands in the air, to slower songs with arms swaying side to side. Nonetheless, after every song the crowd encored Hoodie for more.

Continuing his tour next in Utah, Hoodie and his opener bands Luke Christopher and Myles Parrish left an impressively entertaining performance in Denver. Although the majority of the crowd were teenaged, the three of them collectively put on a performance enjoyable for everyone that attended that night.