THE EVGLE HAS LANDED.
There’s no question Blxst is one of LA’s hometown favorites. Since the release of SIXTAPE 2 — a collaboration with fellow LA native & hometown favorite Bino Rideaux — both their careers, music, & notoriety have skyrocketed (Sheeeeesh!). So much so, Blxst’s No Love Lost tour sold out within a matter of minutes, needing to add a second show in Los Angeles due to the overwhelming demand. Choosing his second show in LA was a strategic choice. Hoping he would go all out for his last LA show, on his first tour. That’s exactly what happened. He gave a memorable experience worth every dollar.
SCENE:
The building is packed. Lights are set. Drinks are going. Smoking is flowing. While waiting for the Evgle head honcho to hit the stage, we were met with the sounds of LA native, DJ Lady.
Home girl did her thing on them turn tables. Period. Her spin was in perfect theme to paying homage to the sounds of the city we all love. She kept the crowd up with back to back West Coast bangers, meshing her bpm effortlessly. Lady wrapped her set charging up the crowd for Evgle gang’s DJ Phillip to take the stage. Phillip wasted no time kicking off the show, introducing Jay Millian to the crowd.
Jay confidently worked the stage, performing a string of his latest singles. His warm presence illuminated the soul in his G-soul styled music. He set a comfortable, laid back West Coast tone with “Karma,” “Be Alright,” and “Problems.” Jay also let off a full version of an unreleased song he previewed back in June. He closed out his set with “Too Many,” bringing out rapper CALIthePOET to perform.
NOTE: Jay Millian raps, writes and produces. But this night, he put the pen and headphones down to pick up the mic. He was one of 6 hand selected producers to work on SIXTAPE 2. “Pop Out,” “One Of Them Ones,” & “She Perfect” all include his producer tag. So it was a teamed full circle moment for him to open for Blxst. Keeping everything within the Evgle family. #Gang.
Now, it’s time. DJ Phillip introduces Blxst as he enters stage left, accompanied by the powerhouse singer Cheyenne Wright. They opened the show with “Wrong or Right.” Their two voices blended soulfully through the theatre speakers. Followed by the tour’s title track “No Love Lost,” and “Searching,” the feathery poetic justice vibe from the LP.
Blxst then tested the crowd’s knowledge of his catalogue breaking into singles, “Slip N Slide,” “Selfish,” & “Bacc Home” both from SixTape.
“Bacc Home” cemented the theme of the night. Blxst was back home to put on for the city that viciously holds him down. To relish in the victory of it all. Then, carrying the theme, surprise guest Uncle Snoop Dogg rushed the stage to a lit crowd. Dressed in a Doggystyle sweatshirt, Snoop laid down his notorious “Nothin’ but a G thang” verse sequent to “Wrong Idea.”’ Snoop & Blxst exchanged turns flexing their Crip walks in true West Coast fashion as the crowd cheered them on.
NOTE: Both songs are staple West Coast tracks. Which is what Blxst’s song are now becoming. This special moment further solidified what we already know — Blxst is one of the new voices and sounds of the West. Having Snoop Dogg be a genuine fan of your work and give it high praise so early on in your career, when you’ve barely begun to scratch the surface…it’s fucking legendary. On stage Snoop officially granted Blxst the keys to the city. And they already have music together on the way. (With a nod to his set sequence, both Snoop & Jay Millian are from Long Beach).
Snoop’s appearance set a high tone and Blxst kept the momentum blazing with two more successful singles, “Brand New” (a personal favorite) & “Fck Boys” (ft. Russ).
NOTE: Early in Blxst’s career Russ tapped in to show love and to maybe one day make music together. The fruit from that relationship is their collaboration now (with hopefully more to come). Even Russ, another talented artist, could see the eagle’s trajectory then.
The show took a brief moment for Blxst to talk about someone in the industry who gave him the opportunity to do music before he even had a stage name. In harmony with his expresison, DJ Phillip dropped the first couple of strings to “Can I.” Then LA’s secret weapon Eric Bellinger subtly walked out. He serenaded the crowd delivering his high pitches, melodic riffs and famous tags we love. He also went on to give “G.O.A.T.,” a single from his 2016 project.
NOTE: This one was the most significant full circle moment of the night. Eric took Blxst under his wing helping him reach his full potential as an artist. Blxst giving Eric those flowers on stage was beautiful to watch. To memory, it was the first time they’ve performed “Can I.” You could tell from their exchanged energy that performing it in their hometown with the crowd knowing every word had them shocked and on a high.
The Evgle gang captain dipped back into the album with “Gang Slide,” where Cheyenne Wright took us to church with an acapella melody of the song’s chorus. It was fluently mixed into “Pop Out” trailed by “Falling,” (both personal favorites; those samples go crazy!). He performed “Pressure” with emphasis as the song’s motifs of confidence, gratitude & perseverance came to life. The mellow contrast between sound and lyrics opened space for rapper Kalan Fr. Fr. to perform. He took the opportunity to promote his latest single “Never Lose You.”
NOTE: Blxst giving Kalan a moment to shine was another full circle highlight and showed how solid of an individual Blxst is. Kalan played a part in being one of the bridges that linked Blxst and Bino which led to the SixTape series. It showed his gratitude and his willingness to give love to other LA artists contributing to the New West Coast sound.
This section of the set was wrapped by “Forever Humble” (another nod to set sequence). Here, Blxst got real comfortable in his bag as he flexed all over it. Rightly. Even giving us some real dance moves. You could tell he was in spirit with the room’s energy. Being forever humble for his success. Every play, every way. Full circle.
“Don’t Forget” & a snippet of “One Of Them Ones” (personal favorite) filled the space in between before the big pre finale. DJ Phillip didn’t let a second skip after “One Of Them Ones” before spinning “Got It All.” Suddenly Dom Kennedy came out on stage to administer his verse. The energy in the room shifted as we experienced greatness. Two of LA’s favorites on stage, one a legend the other a legend in the making. After their song Blxst insisted Dom give us “that real LA shit,” and we were gifted with “When I Come Around.” (If you don’t know this one, then you’re probably not from LA!). The vibe in that theatre became so vicious the crowd literally was louder than Dom on the mic.
Following the rush, Blxst fittingly closed out the show with “Overrated” which felt like an ode to the city and the crowd. An exchange of love for loyalty. And we were there to give it. He came back for an encore of “Chosen,” his current single in rotation on the radio. The Evgle graciously thanked the crowd for coming out and soared stage left.
It’s important to take a moment to acknowledge the show’s deliberate set sequence overall.
Blxst told his story sonically. Presenting the mainstream album but in between acknowledging the songs, people and plays that led to No Love Lost. This show was for LA and his day one fans. Blxst showed love all night and got love all night. He put on the way he intended to. It would be remiss to say otherwise.
Blxst is extremely talented, but his honesty and humility is what makes him so likable and successful. He does it from the heart. And authenticity always wins. Blxst understands his journey is bigger than himself. Artists like Nate Dogg, Nipsey Hussle, Snoop Dogg, Dom Kennedy and many others have paved the way. And now, he’s setting a new bar.
Can’t wait to see what else is in store once he wraps up this tour because we know big things are sure to follow. Though while on the road it was announced that Blxst renewed his deal with Red Bull Records for an exclusive partnership and is currently nominated as Best New Artist for this year’s BET Hip Hop Awards (Sheeeeeesh!).
YOU SHOULD KNOW BY NOW!
#StayHomeGrown