It brought a bustle of positive energy, great music and a wide arrangement of entertainment; Snoop Dogg’s Highschool Reunion tour began this past June. On Tuesday, Aug. 21, he came to the Land of Enchantment.
The tour has a hit line-up of artists including Wiz Khalifa, Warren G, DJ Drama, Berner, Too $hort and headliner Snoop Dogg. It had been six years since Snoop Dogg was last in Albuquerque, but the crowd made sure to show him love with constant dancing, singing and hollering. It was an electric feeling that was impossible to ignore.
The Isleta Amphitheater is Albuquerque’s largest concert venue, capable of holding 15,000 people at a time and was pushed to its limits with Snoop Dogg on stage. The amphitheater has yet to release the recorded attendance of the show, but as shown by the picture, it was a sea on the lawn.
All six artists on the stage encouraged the crowd, whether in song lyrics or in crowd work, to smoke cannabis. Of course, the crowd needed no convincing as the air was filled with a thick layer of smoke above their heads – essential to any Snoop Dogg show.
DJ Drama, Berner, Too $hort and Warren G all came in and out within the first three hours and brought a continuous flow of booming bass and tight verses. As they warmed up the crowd and got everyone buzzing, it drove away those who only wanted to see the main attractions. For those who stayed, the anticipation was running high, making Wiz Khalifa and Snoop Dogg’s performance even better.
The waiting game was a classic strategy to play with the audience’s mind and make everyone crave their performance; it was a success. When each artist hit the stage, the entire crowd erupted. While it wasn’t necessarily a big finale when Wiz Khalifa and Snoop Dogg ended the show, the energy surged to an even higher level.
The performance was filled with backdrops displaying Californian views and backup dancers. Snoop Dogg himself even brought a set of his own wheels, literally driving a car stage alongside exceptional pole dancing. I was struck with awe and shock, but it cemented that this was, in fact, a Snoop Dogg concert.
The show ran for over six hours by the end of the encore. The entire time, the volume was beyond loud, whether it was the music or the roar of the audience at the start and end of every song. The high octane energy of the crowd was infectious and kept everyone buzzing with joy for hours afterwards.
Then, Snoop Dogg’s car was slowly rolled off the stage through a door as the lights dimmed, the artists left and the fans piled into their cars happily shouting all the way home.
BillyJack Davidson is a freelance reporter at the Daily Lobo. He can be reached at culture@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @BillyJackDL
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BillyJack Davidson is a beat reporter at the Daily Lobo. He can be reached on Twitter @BillyJackDL
