In the lull leading up to Danny Brown's performance, security guards broke up two near fist-fights. Brown's palpable energy fueled a rowdy crowd.
The 33-year-old rapper, on the latter half of his international, 48-concert tour, performed at The Waiting Room on Delaware Avenue Wednesday. Brown is on tour promoting his third studio album, Old.
The openers, Bodega Bamz and ZelooperZ, had primed the raucous crowd into a near frenzy for Brown's entrance. When his performance finally began after 2.5 hours, Brown riled the attendees into a frenzy in the tightly packed Waiting Room. At least eight people were escorted out by security guards, who were forced to shove their way through the sweaty, packed crowd to keep spectators from getting out of control.
As for the performance itself, Brown went through his set, which included crowd favorites like "Break It" and "Dip." Brown also threw a few surprises in, such as "BlueBerry," a song Brown featured on with English DJ Darq E. Freaker - a song choice fans responded to loudly.
For concertgoer Michael Haar, the best song of the night was "Monopoly." Haar, a Buffalo native and Canisius College student, described the concert as an intimate and suffocating experience.
Brown riled up fans, jumping, pumping his fists and often running along the edge of the crowd to touch people's hands. During one of the peaks of the crowd's rowdiness, Brown urged attendees to get creative in his song "Express Yourself." During the performance, multiple fans attempted to jump on their neighbor's shoulders and crowd surf.
One of the most memorable parts of the show was the humidity. The number of people in a small space made the room sweltering. During some points of the show, performers tossed water bottles to people stretching out their hands and trying to stave off the heat.
The volume of the concert only added to the experience, as huge speakers sent pounding bass and vocal waves across the small venue.
"I lost hearing in both of my ears," said Brianna Harris, a Buffalo native who came from Columbia College in Chicago to see Brown.
Harris said the show was nothing short of amazing.
The wildness of the fans was what really made the concert notable. The crowd resembled a mob by the end of the night. Brown gave an incredible performance, but being in a mass of shoving, jumping bodies and hoarse screams gave the concert's atmosphere an indescribable charm, as winning as it was thrilling.
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