Day N Night Fest

Despite Organizational Fails, Day N Night Fest Makes Bangin’ Debut at Oak Canyon Park

When the lineup for Day N Night Festival dropped almost two months ago, all the young rap / hip hop fans lost their heads. With so many heavy hitters on the lineup — from Young Thug to Vic Mensa, to Post Malone and the Suicide Boyz — it was a must-see for many. And with so many great performances, it was bound to be difficult to choose who to watch and who to skip.

Take a Look at Photos From Day Two of Day N Night Festival!

The festival took place at the Oak Canyon Park located about 20 mins or so from the Observatory in Santa Ana, which is the venue who hosted the event. Immediately, as you walked into the festival you would see that there was more to do than just turnin’ up to live music. They had multiple clothing vendors set up so you could do some shopping in between sets. They also had a variety of different foods like waffles, pizza, chicken, and veggies burgers. If you so happened to eat yourself into a food coma, they had multiple swings hanging from tree branches all around the park where you could lay down and relax a little bit. Included in all that was also a ferris wheel that gave beautiful views of the whole park. What’s a music festival these days without a ferris wheel, right?

To start off my day, I went and caught H-Towns very own, Maxo Kream’s set. Having only three tapes under his belt, Maxo Kream started off playing some hits from his latest mixtape The Persona Tape.

Rae Sremmurd at Day N Night Fest

The day continued catching acts such as Father, MADEINTYO, Cozz, Da$h and many other wonderful acts, but in my opinion the festival didn’t really come to life until the sun was setting and the heat was beginning dissipate.

Record producer Mike Will Made-It really got things started by bringing out surprise guests Rae Sremmurd to perform during his set. Having their highly anticipated second studio album Sremmurd Life 2 released just two days ago, the crowd really went crazy. The duo played songs from both studio albums and performed hits “No Type” & “Flex Zone” amongst others.

Lil Uzi Vert followed Mike Will’s and Rae Sremmurd’s set. Lil Uzi, born and raised in Philadelphia, broke into the music scene just last year with his mixtape Luv is Rage which really made him rise to stardom and a land a deal with Atlantic records. Lil Uzi gave an an energetic performance. At one point towards the end of his set Uzi jumped into the crowd to perform from within but wasn’t able to make it back onto the stage. He tried going around the fence but this caused fans to chase and run after him leading the whole crowd in the night stage to start playing a game of catch the chicken around the whole stage. Lil Uzi eventually made it back onto the stage and continued on with the show.

Lil Uzi Vert at Day N Night Fest

One of my personal favorites, Post Malone, took the stage after Lil Uzi. Post Malone, a Texas native, made his introduction into the music scene with radio hit “Whiter Iverson,” which he also used to open his set. Post continued playing some of his most catchy singles and hits from his debut mixtape August 26th.

Following Post Malone came Compton’s — I’m sorry, Bompton’s, very own YG. YG performed various songs from his newest album Still Brazy. With hit songs containing lyrics about getting shot and walking the same day, living up in the streets, and people claiming the gang life when they’re really not—it was definitely a set that shouldn’t have been missed.

Last but not least came Harlem’s pretty flacko Jodey aka A$AP Rocky. Rocky put on a mesmerizing performance opening up with a smoke covered stage and wearing a hooded robe he began singing ” I know I dream about… ” Rocky went on to bring out not all, but most of the A$AP Mob. The only one missing was A$AP Ferg. Although absent, they performed A$AP Ferg’s “Work” & “Hella Hoes” together. A$AP Rocky couldn’t have been a more perfect way to end Day 1 of Day N Night.

While the booking selection and performance at Day N Night (day one) were quite impressive, bringing out herds of young and hip fans of hip hop / rap, the festival definitely lacked in organization. Long entry lines, mass traffic getting out of the venue, messed up set times, and basic food offerings, are just a few of the logistical problems. While Day N Night Festival aced their booking selection with some of the hottest hip hop acts favored by today’s youth, organizers really need to get their organizational skills on point if fans are going to continue to pay $200+ dollars for a weekend pass.

Photography: Brandon Espeleta