The third night of the Columbia Experimental Festival showcased experimental hip-hop at its finest at Rose Music Hall
The Columbia Experimental Festival took place Nov. 2 through Nov. 5 and was organized by Dismal Niche Arts, a non-profit organization and record label dedicated to “offering local residents rare opportunities to experience world class presentations of innovative and non-conventional music, art and performances.”
Throughout the festival, many local and underground artists performed at various small businesses and venues in downtown Columbia, showcasing a diverse range of genres. Each day of the festival consisted of two to four performances.
This year was the eighth annual festival, but as of right now, Dismal Niche Arts does not plan to hold the festival again next year due to not having enough volunteers to organize the event each year, making this year the last time Columbia residents can experience these performances. The performances brought out local Columbians eager to watch artists like J2M, Tri-County Liquidators and Rome Streetz.
The Maneater reports on the concerts part of the Columbia Experimental Music Festival that took place throughout the week, speaking with concert-goers and performers.
Griselda Records artist Rome Streetz headlined at Rose Music Hall on Nov. 4. The opening acts were New York City rapper Chyna Streetz and MU graduate Zeph France. Rose Music Hall was filled with a small crowd under the venue’s wooden beamed ceiling. Both the crowds’ and the performers’ shared love for hip-hop made the night an intimate experience.
The concert was one of many events within the Columbia Experimental Music Festival.The eighth annual festival was presented by Dismal Niche Arts, a non-profit organization and record label dedicated to showcasing independent artists in Columbia.
Rome Streetz has made a name for himself in the underground rap scene with songs like “Big Steppa” and “Tyson Beckford” off his 2022 album “Kiss The Ring.” His performance generated excitement amongst both casual concert-goers and the fans well aware of his music.
“I’m a huge rap fan.” MU sophomore Ben Vandermeir said, “I’ve been listening to Rome Streetz for a while so I just think it’s sick that he’s playing here of all places.”
France was the first to showcase his talent on the stage at Rose Music Hall. He graduated from MU in May and currently has 23,000 monthly listeners on Spotify. While underground to some, concert-goers appreciated France’s presence as a local artist.
“It’s always cool to support people [who] are local,” concertgoer Paul Mejer said. “And I know he doesn’t have too many listeners or anything. I bet he’ll still put on a great show. I’m definitely excited to see what he pulls up with.”
France’s performance was personal, sharing life stories in between songs. He paid homage to his family, giving appreciation to his grandparents for playing a crucial role in the artist he is today. France did this by giving a short speech about their love for one another before he sang the song “my boo.” He also performed several unreleased songs that piqued the interest of the crowd, as concert goers danced and clapped to the beat. His performance was filled with affection, making me optimistic for his future in the music industry.
Following France, Streetz took the stage as the second opener. Before the concert, I did not know who she was. She has only 356 monthly listeners on Spotify. However, throughout her performance, she accepted that most of the people in the crowd had never heard of her before and proceeded to prove why she’s worth listening to. Her lyrical approach with an occasional catchy chorus and a gritty production style gave the performance a power stage presence.
She also engaged in crowd work, conversing with concert goers between songs and telling them to move their hands side-to-side while performing. Although she is an underground rapper, she was still able to effectively make concertgoers embrace her music and her presence on the stage.
The real star of the night was Rome Streetz. The artist performed dozens of songs live with just the instrumentals as his accompaniment. With no background lyrics to assist him, his breath control still seemed invincible. Considering the number of songs he performed, you would think he would lose stamina, but his delivery remained intact with his lyrics sharp on songs like “Heart On Froze” and “Peri Peri”.
The only flaw of the night was the stage workers’ stalled time. There were numerous miscommunications between the artists on the stage and the audio controllers. This was a recurring event during Chyna Streetz’s performance, often taking breaks between songs to communicate with the crowd.
However, this minor flaw wasn’t enough to diminish the entire concert as both the openers pleasantly surprised me and Rome Streetz proved himself to be well deserving of the respect he has received from his listeners.
“Rome Streetz is definitely the modern day Big L,” Mejer said. “Seeing him live is definitely something special.”
Edited by Alex Goldstein | agoldstein@themaneater.com
Copy edited by Hannah Taylor and Sterling Sewell | ssewell@themaneater.com