Photo Courtesy of Tiffanie Cheng

Power 106’s Big Boy brought a hip-hop house party to the Hollywood Palladium on Wednesday night with a mixed collection of incoming and well-known performers including Tayf3rd, Hit Boy, DJ Set, Nipsey Hussle, Big Sean and Lupe Fiasco.  

The event, titled Big Boy’s Block Party after the popular radio DJ, catered to the musical tastes of all fans with an eclectic blend of music with genres ranging from hard rap, dance pop music, and smooth hip hop. 

Show headliner Lupe Fiasco brought nothing but energy to the stage at the Palladium, hopping along the stage and rolling somersaults on the floor past his band members to a cheering crowd.

Wearing vintage sunglasses, a casual dark grey t-shirt and matching jeans, he paused only from his energetic antics to rap the lyrics of his smooth hip hop tracks into a glowing sphere-shaped microphone.

“All the performers so far have been great. I originally came to the Block Party to see Lupe [Fiasco], but I’ve been surprised by how much I like all the other performers as well,” said Scott Oellien, a 22-year old student from Granada Hills.

“I’m glad I got the chance to see him perform live, you can really see how the fact that he’s so passionately involved with the music helps push him to the next level,” he adds. 

Fiasco performed several songs off his most recent and previous albums, including his smash hit “Superstar,” “The Show Goes On” and “Words I’ve Never Said.”

He raised the excitement levels in the venue with his upbeat stage presence and elicited cheers from the crowd by flinging water bottles and spraying the cheering fans. 

The popular American rapper also took the time to show his appreciation for his devoted supporters, dedicating his performance of “Beautiful Lasers” to a fan who had told him the song had kept her from committing suicide. 

“I not only support him for his music, but also for his dedication to stay true to himself and not get lost in someone else’s music,” commented Aneesah El-Amin, a local Los Angeles resident. “I’m Muslim and I know he is as well, and his songs have Islamic messages that really speak to me.”

Big Sean played before Fiasco as the second headliner, entertaining the crowd with a more lighthearted and tongue-in-cheek performance. He performed several of his hit singles, including “Dance (A$$)” wearing a simple all black cut off muscle tee and black sweat pants. 

While Fiasco seemed to appeal to both genders, Sean seemed to cater especially to women by stripping his shirt halfway through his performance to gyrate to the music for his screaming female fans.

Sean even welcomed surprise guest performer, Tyga, to the stage to perform “Do What I Gotta Do” to the delight of the audience. 

“I liked seeing a mix of different flavors tonight,” comments Camille Tse, a 20 year-old first time Block Party attendee. She added, “Some performers have chill and set a relaxed pace while others brought the energy with intensity. I felt like each and every performer brought a piece of their own music to the stage to help the concert fit all together.”

Read more of NT's show coverage here.