For the second straight Spring Fling, the headlining artist took a selfie onstage with a student’s phone – capturing a first-hand snapshot of University Yard’s biggest event of the spring.
But the similarities between Jay Sean’s and Macklemore’s performances stop there. This time, only hundreds of students covered about half the yard instead of thousands cramming back toward the street. This time, the headliner played last decade’s hits instead of current chart-toppers.
Late to his own performance, British rapper Jay Sean made his way to the stage wearing a Hermes belt alongside two dancers who grinded up against him in fishnet tights and spandex shorts.
Most audience members were waiting for Sean to play his most well-known
song, “Down,” but were unfamiliar with many of the unpopular songs from his 2004 debut album, “Me Against Myself.” To help please the crowd, he brought out a Nicki Minaj cover.
Bits of beatboxing entertained onlookers between songs, but the crowd remained tame. After finally hearing Sean perform “Down,” many students left and the crowd fizzled out.
Although Sean was billed as the main act, the California-based surf-rock band Wavves drew a contingent of devoted fans. Lead-singer Nathan Williams clad in a Seinfeld T-shirt and Alex Gates, with a neon electric guitar, delivered a raucous performance.
Once Wavves started playing, students immediately formed a mosh pit as people crowdsurfed and slammed into each other front and center, screaming out the lyrics to critically acclaimed hits like “Demon to Lean On” and “King of the Beach.”
Congo Supreme, made up of of GW student Abbay Misganaw, also known as Haile Supreme, Jeff Franca of Thievery Corporation and Flex Mathews added a hyper-local twist to the lineup.
Supreme, with his frizzy dark Afro, bounced around the stage while the trio got the crowd dancing to its tribal sounds, absorbing the crowd’s energy.
“If losing my mind on stage means getting crazy, then I’m all for it,” he said in an interview.
Program Board leaders said they do not track precise attendance figures for the event.
