After gaining notoriety for being the guitarist of the band, The Internet, Steve Lacy released his first solo album, “Apollo XXI,” on May 24. As a producer, he has produced music for many artists like J. Cole and Kendrick Lamar. The singer recently held a concert in South Philly at the Theater of the Living Arts (TLA), which is a very up-close and personal venue that makes every experience memorable. The doors opened at 7 o’clock, where fans rushed in to get to the front of the stage. Everyone dressed like they raided Steve Lacy’s closet (peep his Instagram).
Kari Faux, aka Violet Waters, opened for Steve with about a half-hour of DJ-ing. Her mixes got the crowd hyped in the way that she made everyone think that she pre-recorded her mixes. After Kari got off of the stage, fans waited impatiently for another half-hour for Steve to perform. As soon as the lights went out, everyone closed the gaps in the crowd to get closer to the stage and yelled for Steve. The lighting matched the vibes of the soft orange color, as well as his persona. When he walked on stage, he was wearing a slightly oversized pink suit. He played his album, “Apollo XXI,” in order, starting with “Only If.” After the first four songs, he talked to the crowd and blatantly stated how tired he was from touring, but he still performed with his relaxed manner. With concerts, sometimes you don’t get what you pay for, so it’s rare for artists to sound exactly like the recorded albums. But Steve is the exception. True to character, he not only brought out a sparkly pink electric guitar while playing “Guide,” but he also brought the funk.Before the interlude, Steve was messing around with a synthesizer and making fresh beats. It was fascinating to see how he captivated the whole crowd with just high-pitched frequencies, yet still made it into music. As the concert came to an end, Steve played “N Side,” which showed his versatility. He’s funk enough to remind people of Prince, pop enough to be Miguel’s son, R&B enough to be in the same universe as Frank Ocean, and hip-hop enough to share a stage with rising artists like Patrick Page II and Matt Martians. That is Steve Lacy: a perfect culmination of all genres.