2022 was a great year for the city of oaks, the local festival Hopscotch was the talk of the town, with a large number of attendees and musicians roaming the town, it felt like our city was having a non-stop 3 day party.
Moore Square and the City Plaza dressed up nicely for the events, but the venues around the epicenter of the festival enhanced the overall experience.
Our minds were mesmerized with the presence of the talented Charley Crockett, Jaime Wyatt, Seun Kuti & Egypt 80, at the main stages. Let’s not just talk about the music, but the way they carried themselves on stage, connected with the audience, and transformed the energy into one big mass of human electricity that could be felt through the airwaves. (phew)
Music was everywhere, you could even hear and see it through the fences, crowds of people walking from venue to venue just to get a glance at their favorite international, national, and local artists. Some people even took advantage of the new Sip n’ Stroll Downtown district, which lets you purchase alcoholic drinks and enjoy them through downtown Raleigh. There is a map where you can see what areas are sippin’ friendly.
The Pour House Music Hall & Record Shop , Slim’s Downtown, Ruby Deluxe, Transfer Co. Ballroom, Crank arm Brewing, Boxcar (to name a few) are venues that held Day Parties and after hour shows, this is where Raleigh shows off their local talent. We were all surprised that one of the city’s beloved venues Kings opened their doors for 2 days of day party shenanigans, truly a pleasant surprise filled with memories from years past. Acts such as Pie Face Girls, Vacant Company, Al Riggs, who are well known in the Oak City music scene made their presence loud and clear, letting locals and visitors know what our city is all about.
For those of you who did not attend the performance The Moshpit Messiah, better known as Jooselord, made the floor and ceiling shake… literally!. Slim’s Downtown could not contain the frantic emotions in the room, there were mosh pits, crowd surfing, stomping, and even boots flying over our heads!, he really lives up to his name.
If you were paying close attention, there was one venue that made it loud and clear who the boss is at organizing DIY events. We are talking about Iguanatropolis, a discrete musicians paradise that hosted some of the best day parties in town. They opened their door and welcomed anybody who wanted to experience music in a more personal level, since you were only 2 steps away from stepping on the musicians pedals, literally. If you ever want to attend to one of their shows, ask a punk.
Walking, running, cycling, sleeping a few hours a day, boots over your head, eating whenever you can, it is all worth it. We cannot wait for the next one.
Hey! Raleigh 