Springfest draws large crowd to campus


The USC Concerts Committee hosted its annual Springfest concert on Saturday, headlined by Jamie xx. From music to food vendors to the Beer Garden, Springfest brought a multitude of USC students to McCarthy Quad throughout the day.

The event lasted more than nine hours and consisted of several performances and activities. Many students arrived early to check out the multitude of food trucks and vendor booths available such as the famous Jogasaki Sushiburritto and The Boba Truck.

Kid Cadaver, an indie-rock band, kicked off the event with a lively and fun-spirited set that left the crowd pumped. They were followed by solo singer PJ and her band, debuting songs from her new album, Rare. EDM artist, Big Wild, then took the stage as McCarthy Quad started to fill up with excited concertgoers. His stage setup was fairly simple, only a drum pad and a laptop, but with each song played the crowd begged for more, even demanding an encore at the conclusion of his performance. Big Wild was happy to comply and give them one more song.

Following Wild’s performance, rapper Cozz took the stage followed by Grammy-nominated singer Andra Day who gave a soulful performance of her top single “Rise Up,” among others. Hit R&B group, The Internet, took the stage around 7:30 p.m. to change the mood after Cozz and Day. The group, which is made up of many artists with successful solo careers, had the crowd swaying and grooving from downbeat to finale, which highlights a major accomplishment achieved by the Concerts Committee: musical diversity.

Later in the night, R&B legend Jeremih took the stage and wooed the audience with an electrifying set consisting of some of his most popular hits such as “Down on Me” and “Somebody.” The crowd went particularly wild when Jeremih sang his throwback hit “Birthday Sex.” Ending the night was an electrifying and visually stunning set from DJ and remix artist, Jamie xx. From alternative rock to R&B to EDM to pop, there was something in this festival for all musical tastes, and the high attendance rate certainly reflected this.

After his performance, Big Wild expressed his excitement in an interview with the Daily Trojan, despite the fact that the crowd was one of the smallest that he has performed in front of.

“It was cool to play at a college festival because usually I play at big festivals where nobody really knows who I am. But I definitely had a lot of people who knew me and were familiar with my music, and that’s awesome,” Wild said.

He also said that he is gearing up for a two month headlining tour that will conclude with performances at Coachella, and that he looks forward to releasing a lot of new material before the end of the year.

Attendees were impressed with the range of artists performing Saturday.

“They did a really great job this year. When I saw the lineup, I thought, ‘Wow, two headliners!’ Jamie xx and Jeremih are both such big artists right now,” said David Bloch, a sophomore majoring in communication. “The atmosphere is poppin’. Everyone seems very happy with the festival and the addition of GREENHAÜS, and the weather could not be better.”

Springfest’s GREENHAÜS was a popular destination for many of the event-goers. The geodesic dome, which was located at the edge of McCarthy Quad, acted as the side stage of the entire event and was the site of many different alternative activities. Decorated with vines and mist makers, the GREENHAÜS dome hosted an intimate geodesic yoga session, a virtual reality panel and guided meditation. In between these events, the Concerts Committee invited multiple student DJs to perform their sets; such performers included Jynjo, Matt DiMona and Matt Ossentjuk. Beyond showcasing its popular line-up, Springfest organizers this year reached out to student talent and provided them with an opportunity to showcase their work to the rest of the USC community.

Overall, Springfest 2016 was another highly successful festival thanks to the efforts of the USC Concerts Committee.

The event was well-received and garnered praise from students across campus. In a collaborative effort with Trojan Pride, Undergraduate Student Government, Graduate Student Government, Environmental Student Assembly, Special Events Committee and Program Board, the Concerts Committee successfully took on the challenge of bringing together students with diverse tastes in music; moreover, it greatly improved on the negative feedback it received last year regarding the lateness of announcing the performance lineup. Despite the delays in performance times, Springfest 2016 was a remarkable event that highlighted USC’s incredible programming ability for its students. Through its star-studded lineup and innovative GREENHAÜS dome, Springfest 2016 redefined the experience of USC concerts and set new standards for its future events.