Arriving fashionably late, we waited in line as the doorman ushered in handfuls of twenty somethings as if we were waiting to enter a high profile nightclub. It was already 11 p.m., but the rush of intoxicated youth continued to bombard the Royal’s entrance as the muddled P.A.’s fueled our anxiety to get inside. As we sauntered through the door, the grounded feeling of Olympia’s mild demeanor was forcefully ripped out from under us, leaving a sense of appealing chaos. Walking straight to the bar we waited for our double gins as a wobbly young woman was asked to vacate the premises, which ultimately set the tone for the remainder of the night.
Opening act XP – who has previously been featured by artist Macklemore – was on stage, rapping about his usual themes of repping the local scene and chilling out. We zigzagged our way towards the front like a pack of rats slinking around the side of a refrigerator, and settled in the right corner next to a group of clown-faced people.
Then Motamouth Jones took the stage and the energy completely took a turn for the better. Totally decked out in joker-like attire, complete with face paint, colorful top hats and hatchetmen – that’s right, they were juggalos – people started to ‘go hard’. Finally it started to feel like we were really at a hip-hop show. After a 45- minute set, E-40 came on stage close to 12:30 P.M.
His long-awaited appearance was greeted by intense fist-pumping and rump-shaking, leading up to his epic ‘95 classic ‘Sideways’. He performed seamlessly, but only played the crowd-pleasing ‘bangers’ such as ‘White Girl’ and ‘Captain Save A Hoe’. His unique flow and agreeable beats kept everyone engaged, yet his only unexpected gesture was that he only played for 30 minutes. Though his short performance was a huge bummer, the combination of a sloppy crowd, juggalos, and a little 40-Water made the experience worth the $26.
By Melkorka Licea
