Photos and Review by Emily Gringorten
@emgringo

Lil Yachty brought The Field Trip Tour to the Masonic on October 19, 2023. Backed by a stellar all female band, his magnetic stage presence and captivating visuals made this a particularly memorable show.

The night was kicked off by the Concrete Family, a group of up-and-coming rappers who had the ground shaking and the crowd going crazy from the get go. Next was Nick Hakim, whose soulful vocals and more calming production allowed us all to take a moment to breathe after 45 minutes of non-stop energy. Although I happen to be a huge fan of Nick, the alternative rock set felt slightly out of place considering most were at this show to get demolished in a mosh pit. Following that set, you’d never know you were at a rap concert, as songs like Coldplay’s “Yellow” and “Viva la Vida” played through the speakers. This was all part of Yachty’s plan, I’m sure, to prime our minds to digest tracks from his more experimental and psychedelic new release “Let’s Start Here” rather than his more intense older rap songs. Preceded by his impressive band, referred to as the Silver Sisters, Yachty opened with his newest hit “drive ME crazy!”, a beautiful ballad that allowed members of his band to have their solo moments and for him to show off his vocals. 

Yachty took a moment to introduce each member of the band before diving into four more songs from his newest release. Then the band performed a cover of “In the Air Tonight” to transition into the older works portion of the setlist. This 15 song stretch comprised classics like “iSpy,” “Broccoli,” and “Coffin,” along with his collaborations with artists like Playboi Carti and NBA Youngboy. Before playing “Yacht Club,’’ his collaboration with Juice WRLD, he urged us all to take part in a moment of silence to honor the late rapper — although a few individuals just couldn’t keep their mouths shut. The crowd was completely wild, packed like sardines and constantly flowing like a body of water. At one point Yachty even paused the show and asked everyone to take a step back. After “One Night,” he closed off the show with four more newer tracks. 

Switching up your image and sound is obviously a risk, especially for such an established artist. However, it’s clear that Yachty fans are going to show up and love him regardless of what comes out of his mouth. This is just the beginning for him, and I look forward to seeing what he does next!