West Virginia’s Rollout Music Fest, featuring Ludacris, rolled into Charleston and took the audience on a musical journey back in time.
After 45 minutes of opening entertainment with a local DJ, a radio host, and various up-and-coming local talent, the Ying Yang Twins took the stage to a hyped-up awaiting hip-hop crowd. Kaine and D-Roc were full of zest and were all over the stage from the word go. They had the attendees singing along and dancing in the aisles. The duo played a solid 30-minute set and rocked the stage. They debuted in 2000 and were popular in the mid-2000s. The masses enjoyed this duo.
As concertgoers continued pouring into the coliseum, and after a quick break between acts, T.I. charged the stage wearing a white Atlanta hoodie with his hood up and immediately grabbed ahold of the audience. He was full of energy and all over the stage. Several songs in, the groove hits on “No Mediocre” and all the hips were moving and all the butts were grooving and then the beat dropped for “Whatever You Like.” “Stacks on deck, Patron on ice, and we can pop bottles all night, and baby, you can have whatever you like” was heard over the massive speakers. All those in attendance were heavily involved like T.I was the main event. This set did not disappoint. “Bring Em Out” had hands and arms bouncing up and down and it was like the crowd was hypnotized. “I got a grind, won’t stop, hustle won’t quit” rang loud around the coliseum as “Go Get It” hit hard.
Running a little behind schedule after a fully-packed night, an intro video came on and then the DJ yelled, “Everybody say Luda” over and over and then Ludacris finally strutted out on stage to “Southern Fried” and the arena went wild! Immediately, the crowd was under Luda’s control. He hollered, “When I say ‘act a’ ya’ll say ‘fool'” back and forth and then cut into “Act A Fool” from the 2 Fast 2 Furious movie soundtrack. He powered through several more hits including “Southern Hospitality,” “Area Codes,” with WV’s 304 being a focus of course, “Unpredictable,” and “Growing Pains.” Up until this point, those in attendance had been wild but still a little subdued. However, once “Yeah” dropped with all of the strobes and laser lights going crazy, the roof blew off the building. Every hand went up, bouncing with the music, and the crowd was definitely fully energized at this point. From this Usher feature into his song with Taio Cruz, the vivacity was off the charts and then “Baby” hits, his mega-hit feature with Justin Bieber and magic filled the air.
After a few more hits, a moment everyone was waiting for, “What’s Your Fantasy” with the fast hi-hats, syncopated bass, and drums, and it had everyone on their feet. All rumps were shaking, all hands were waiving, and every voice was rapping along with this mega-hit. Adrenalin filled the air and the crowd just couldn’t get enough. Luda demanded “Stand Up” and the arena subdued and he said, “When I move, you move, just like that” and everyone obeyed. A voice said, “Rumor has it, if you go low enough, Ludacris will appear in the mirror, let’s try it” and those in attendance definitely tried to see “How Low” they could go. The night rounded out with move favorites “All I do Is Win,” “Move B****,” and ended with “Get Back.” In all, Ludacris banged out 32 songs in some fashion which is impressive in itself but to keep everyone on their feet and dancing the entire time was just as impressive.
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