AB Concert: Snakehips

At this moment in time, it is especially important that we surround ourselves with friends and do things that we truly enjoy doing. We should prioritize being happy and learning as much as we can about life and the world around us. When things get rough, we have to focus on the positive, because only that will help us move forward. This past weekend, I saw the Snakehips concert in Wiegand gym as a great opportunity to dance and have fun with a couple of my friends.

Every semester, the Activities Board (AB) hosts a concert on campus. I’ve been to several of their concerts, and for the past few years they’ve brought in Electronic Dance Music (EDM) artists. The EDM genre has definitely grown on me, and the AB concerts that I’d been to always felt like dance parties. So when I heard that Snakehips would be performing on campus, I got really excited. To be honest, I hadn’t actually heard of Snakehips before AB advertised the concert. It was only when I decided to click on the Spotify link attached to the Facebook event that I became an immediate fan. Snakehips is a British duo, who became well known for their upbeat remixes of songs by The Weeknd and Banks, and eventually for their singles “All My Friends” with Tinashe and Chance the Rapper, and “Cruel” with ZAYN.

Before the concert started, there was already a long line of people waiting outside the Cohon Center. Everyone seemed really excited and ready to have a good time. Once my friends and I were inside Wiegand, as expected, we found everything completely transformed. The huge stage took up most of the space, making it feel really crowded once more people started arriving. On the side, there was a station where people could put glitter on their faces. The whole atmosphere was filled with free spirits and good vibes, and this made me and my friends even more hyped up for the concert.

Fortunately, we got to the concert pretty early so we could stand in the front row. We were so close to the stage that when the opening act, Social House, started performing, the duo looked straight at us and it felt like they were directly singing to us. Social House are a rhythmic-pop duo originally from Pittsburgh, best known for their 2018 single “Magic in the Hamptons” featuring Lil Yachty. They’ve also co-written songs for artists like Meghan Trainor, DJ Khaled, and Ariana Grande. Something that I found really cool during their performance was that they sampled some of their newest tracks, which they planned on sending to other famous artists. Overall, the crowd loved Social House, and it was a great choice to have them open for Snakehips.

Snakehips came on stage shortly after Social House finished with their act. In contrast to Social House, who spent most of their performance walking around the stage and interacting with the audience, Snakehips stayed behind their turntable, mixing and playing amazing
beat-dropping music. Immediately, the floor began to shake with people dancing and jumping to the rhythm. It really was like no one in the
audience had a care in the world; everyone was having fun, feeling young, and letting the music take control. Snakehips played EDM remixes of Sam Smith’s “Too Good at Goodbyes,” Snoop Dogg’s “Drop It Like It’s Hot,” Soulja Boy’s “Crank That,” and much more. One of my
favorite moments was when Snakehips unexpectedly transitioned from playing one song to their single, “Cruel,” which was a song most people in the audience knew and enjoyed.

Snakehips perfectly finished their concert by playing their hit “All My Friends.” There was no better feel-good song they could’ve ended the night with, and they left the audience singing along to every word in the chorus. This really was an amazing time for a lot of people, especially me and my friends. It was a good reminder to prioritize having fun, as much as I prioritize my work and other responsibilities. I’ll be sure to seek out more events like this in Pittsburgh, and I’m definitely interested in the next concert AB hosts. Thanks for the experience, AB!