Breakaway from the normal: Breakaway Fest

Summertime was made for music festivals and in Columbus, Ohio we live for them. Prime Social Group delivered one of the most diverse music festivals of the year. The line up for Breakaway Festival, which was a two-day event brought out crowds of people from all ages and races. On that Friday, I could feel the anticipation in the air as the people didn’t know what to expect. The weather was hot and beautiful, the only air condition was inside the building where the Prime stage was. The outside area had tons of vendors with food and water available for those in attendance.

Getting my media passes, I was interested in seeing acts perform and how their music comes across live on stage. 1st act I saw was Lil Uzi Vert. Lil Uzi is part of this new youth movement of artist that consider themselves more rock stars than rappers. The blue dread hair rapper came out on the stage and set the tone off the bat. Full of energy and swag, He had the crowd at his control from the 1st song. Not too familiar with his catalog but I can appreciate and artist that can put on a great performance and his showmanship and Lil Uzi Vert have those qualities. The crowd knew the songs word for word and sang along with him. His show was very entertaining to watch and he even joked about his girlfriend not being there because she is in College.

Next up was Rae Sremmurd. I absolutely love these guys music so I was excited to see them perform live. Swae lee and Slim Jimmy did not disappoint at all. Fresh off their release of their sophomore album “Sremm Life 2”, the duo known for their high energy show hit the stage in a full rage. Swae Lee with a bottle of Hennessy in hand worked for the crowd as Slim Jimmy ran back and forth on stage. Running through a medley of hit records and songs with features, the brothers seem like they belong on the stage. “No Flex Zone” got the crowd going and “Black Beatles” rocked the show as everybody was singing “ That girl is real crowd pleaser”. I wouldn’t mind seeing these guys perform again and soon.

The Highlight of the 1st night easily was Chance The Rapper. I can admit that I overlooked Chance The Rapper, I just didn’t get his music for a long time. I was late to the party but took another ‘Chance” on his music after hearing him on his mentor Kanye West album. Performing with a trumpet player “Donnie Trumpet” and a drummer, the crowd went into a frenzy when Chance hit the stage. Hoping right to hit, he went into his early songs and you could tell he was in a zone seeming like he performed these songs in his sleep. The transitions were effortless.

Inspired by James Brown, Chance work the stage side to side dancing and sliding with grace all while working the mic. Stopping in the middle of his set to introduce himself, He also gave props to Ohio and told a story about his 1st show here with Animal House ‘Shout out to Jordian Ross”. Getting to songs I was familiar with, he had the crowd in the palm of his hand and they gave the energy right back to him.

Closing out the 1st night of the Breakaway Festival, I felt that the show was great and the acts were awesome. High impact energy the whole time and no drama. I was exhausted by the end of the night but couldn’t wait for day 2.

Day 2 of the Breakaway Festival I was hype to see what the day would bring.  1st up with hometown kid with a really big record out. After a few technical difficulties due to the equipment overheating, Jerreau “ Formerly of Fly Union” hit the stage. With the help of J Swifa, his former group member Jerreau ran through his album as more and more people approached the stage. The heat was beaming down and ‘Bank Reau” was heating up the stage. By the time he got to his hit record “Really Got It,” the crowd was thick and they rap all the words with him. It was a great sight to see, with the hometown kid getting love.

Good Music Signee Desiigner was up next and I’m a be honest, I never saw that much energy on stage. Along with 2 hype men, Desiigner basically let his tracks play and adlib them the whole time while jumping up and down and stage diving. The 19yo kid look like he was having the time of his life on stage. Performing his hit single “panda’ twice for the crowd got the same reaction both times. I wish I had this kids energy.

The festival was postponed for a few as the rain and lightning hit the fairgrounds. We all moved inside and they decided to move some main acts to the Prime Stage. Young Thug fresh off his release of his new album ‘Jeffery” hit the stage and surprisingly put on one hell  of a performance. The rapper who is known for wearing women’s clothes came out with high energy and tons of hit records. The crowd loved him and he showed out for them. I was impressed by the way he handled the stage and worked the audience. Next up was a kid I’ve heard about but never heard his music. Skizzy Mars isn’t your typical rapper, performing with a stripped down band, It felt more like a rock show than rap. The energy was good and he kept the crowd entertained. I would advise to check out his music. The last act that I saw was the guy that likes to take Uber everywhere. MadeinTyo delivered with a great show. Shout out to our mutual friend Filthy Mcdave, he told it was going to be a good show and he didn’t disappoint. Uber everywhere is hit song but he has more in the stash than that. This guy is capable of making more records.

Overall my experience at Breakaway Festival put on by Prime Social Group was great. I met tons of people and got to hear and see an artist I never thought I would see live. Besides the rain, I was impressed by the whole event and I would tell everybody they should go check them out next year. I can see this being a staple for summer festivals.