Snoop Dogg•Wiz Khalifa•Too $hort•Warren G•Berner•July 11, 2023•USANA Amphitheatre
Reviewed and Photographed by Kaden Severn
Tuesday night hip-hop fans were treated to an absolutely amazing lineup. As fans began to fill USANA, legendary producer DJ Drama, the mastermind behind countless charting songs, started playing some music to get the crowd warmed up. He would return in between the artist’s sets to play during the intermissions.
Berner
The first artist on the High School Reunion Tour was Berner. The rapper and entrepreneur out of the Bay Area signed with Wiz Khalifa’s label, Taylor Gang back in 2012, has long been a staple in the hip-hop community. His set consisted of most of his biggest songs including, “20 Joints”, and “Wax Room”. As the owner of the clothing and lifestyle brand Cookies, Berner tossed out his brand’s lighters, t-shirts, and other swag.
Warren G
Warren G was next up to perform. Many fans knew many of his songs word for word. As the crowd continued to grow I noticed how varied the crowd was in age. Warren G had everyone grooving whether you were 4 or 84 it didn’t matter. Warren G crushed all of his songs like a true professional. After all these years he still was able to rap with the same flow he has always showcased. His set contained “Regulate” and “This D.J”.
Too $hort
Next on the roster was the legendary Too $hort. He has been in the industry making hit songs for a long time and has worked with the likes of 2Pac and Jay-Z. The crowd was really starting to look full now as he got everyone hyped up. Too $hort played some of his best crowd pleasers such as “Burn Rubber”, “I’m A Player”, and of course, his biggest hit “Blow the Whistle”. “Blow the Whistle” had everyone out of their seats!
Wiz Khalifa
As the sun began to set, a massive roar was unleashed from the audience as Wiz Khalifa came out to the famous beat of “Black and Yellow”. Wiz didn’t slow down from there. The Pittsburgh superstar kept the hits coming, following with “Roll Up”, “23”, and “Or Nah”. It was a lot of fun singing along to the songs I’ve been jamming to Wiz since I was a young teen. One thing I loved about his set was that a smile never left his face. He always seems to be having the best time whenever he’s performing his music. There were too many great moments to write but all I can say is that the guy really knows his craft. He finished his set with “On My Level” before telling the audience he would be back later.
Snoop Dogg
Immediately after Wiz finished Snoop Dogg took the stage to “The Next Episode”. As soon as I heard the “Duh duh duh duh duh” I knew we were about to experience some musical excellence. Snoop is one of the most well-known rappers in the world and has a massive catalog of classics at his disposal. Snoop pulled out all of the stops. His performance had everything from a Cadillac on stage that he would sit on while rapping songs like “G Funk Intro” to bringing out some very acrobatic dancers to dance on poles while he performed his hit song with Akon “I Wanna Love You”.
The production was really cool and seemed very polished and professional, Snoop knows what he’s doing that’s for sure. Towards the end of the set, the other star of the movie “Mac and Devin Go To Highschool” Wiz Khalifa joined Snoop on stage. The duo performed 4 songs to close the show out. They played “We Dem Boyz”, “You and Your Friends”, and “Who Am I?” which had every single person singing Snoop Doggy Dog at the top of their lungs. And of course, they had to end the show off with “Young, Wild and Free”. Just an absolutely amazing night of hip-hop that had a fun vibe the whole night. I know I had a great time and hope everyone else did as well.
