FO·MO
ˈfōmō/
noun
informal
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- anxiety that an exciting or interesting event may currently be happening elsewhere, often aroused by posts seen on a social media website.
- “I realized I was a lifelong sufferer of FOMO”
Urban dictionary definition: The fear that if you miss a party or event you will miss out on something great.
My definition: DON’T MISS THE EVENT.
Luckily, I’m here to provide you with all things you’ve missed, in this popping city of Los Angeles. My name is Shirley Ju, and I live, breathe, sleep Hip Hop. Coming from the Bay, I grew up to the hyphy movement. That being said, turning up is all I know. This will be a weekly recap of the dope events that I myself felt like I couldn’t miss, and you guys wish you were at.
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Puma x Rae Sremmurd event At Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood, CA.
Wednesday, August 24
This night was absolutely perfect. And I say that because I am high key obsessed with Rae Sremmurd, the turn up kings. But really, if you guys have not seen these kids live, I highly encourage you to do so. It’s not that ignorant rap music filled with drugs and infidelity, it’s genuine feel-good positive energy every time these guys hit the mic.
Like, imagine if you were celebrating a promotion 24/7? Insert Rae Sremmurd.
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First of all, if you guys haven’t heard SremmLife 2, please do so and report back. The moment I downloaded this into my iTunes, my life was immediately ten times more lit.
Shout out to my girl Aviance who works with Warner Bros. She asked me to be her date the night prior and it was an automatic yes, no hesitation. This event was held by Puma, and hosted by YesJulz. Many of you may recognize the name from a recent sex tape she leaked, but others, such as myself, have no idea who the fuck she is. Sorry if that was dramatic, but she hit the stage and no one gave a hoot. She was rocking a cute all white Puma cropped hoodie though. I’ll give her that.
Swae Lee in an all brown velour suit and Alaskan fur hat.
Things went from 0 to 100 when Swae Lee and Slim Jxmmi hit the stage. First off, they opened with my favorite track off the new project, “Start a Party.” I’m sorry, but it might be impossible to not like this song. Whisky a Go Go, a world famous bar on Sunset Blvd. in West Hollywood, CA, was lit within seconds. It’s a pretty dope venue with an upstairs bar, and it was closed off to the public that night. It was pretty exclusive, as the girls at the door made sure you were on the list before entering.
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Slim Jxmmi in an all white jacket and headphones around his neck.
Real talk though, these fools were moving so much I could barely snap a pic. That just shows you, again, how turnt they are. Swae Lee was ready for the snow with his brown velour suit and Ushanka fur hat. Not sure how he didn’t burn up. Slim Jxmmi was more conventional, coming out with headphones around his neck and a bottle of Hennessy in his hand, eventually retiring it so he could get his groove on.
ICYMI, Slim Jxmmi recently stopped by The Breakfast Club for an interview in pink fur and Gucci goggles. Too epic.
They only played maybe five tracks. The crowd was majority people in the music industry, so no one got too, too wild. I actually ran into a good amount of people, and found out this person knew that person, that person knew this person, it’s a small world, guys. But I love it. I said hi to Ty Dolla $ign, Larry June, and FKi 1st.
Larry June actually met with HipHopDX features writer Ural Garrett earlier that day at Youtube for an interview. He revealed he was starting his own line of oranges. One word: lit. Larry’s from the Bay, so it’s automatic love. He said he was planning on moving to LA and asked for recommendations. I suggested downtown LA, Mid City, Koreatown, and not Hollywood. But then I remembered I’m not a rapper.
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Dope Puma symbol made out of Puma sneakers.
Me being easily amused at anything and everything, I thought this backdrop was super dope. It’s the Puma logo made out of the Puma classic sneakers. My friend said he attended another Puma party that Saturday in the Hollywood Hills, and they were giving out free Puma sneakers! #FOMO. Where’s my invite?
I had to include this Gucci post. “Black Beatles” is probably my second favorite track off SremmLife 2, and it features Guwop. This music video is about to be epic.
Wiz Khalifa & Snoop Dogg shirtless on The High Road Tour in Irvine, CA.
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Thursday, August 25
This night started out a hot mess. First of all, Irvine is certainly not just down the street from LA. It’s a solid hour to the OC, and that’s without traffic. But we had to catch Wiz Khalifa and Snoop Dogg on their High Road Tour. We had to. I didn’t get off until later and my homegirl was driving, shout out to her. We figured we would be cool after traffic but nope.
Pulling up around 10:15, I saw Tye, a DJ at 92.3, exiting the venue in the huge LA The Real 92.3 van. If you guy’s aren’t familiar, it’s a popping radio station out here, now home to Big Boy. I called him to ask why he’s leaving. We pull up to find out everybody walking out of the stadium. The workers also informed us the show was ending. We were in shock and didn’t know how to react.
So of course, we park (SKRT) and immediately speed walk (running would be embarrassing) to get inside the venue. All I wanted was one song, just one. Irvine Meadows is an enormous venue too, worse than the Hollywood Bowl. It’s a lot of walking and stairs. We snuck down as far down as we could, and thank goodness they played for another hour. We seriously thought we missed the show. We walked in during the perfect time too: the peak of Snoop and Wiz’s set.
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Snoop Dogg & Wiz Khalifa closing out their set with blow up RAW joints floaties.
Is it just me, or is Snoop a little too old to have his shirt off? Wiz Khalifa is literally stick thin with more tattoos than skin. They make SUCH a great team, though. They literally played every track. It was one of those sets where every song you’d be like, “Omg I love this song! I forgot about this song!” Great example: “Young, Wild, and Free.” It hits home every time. Snoop also blessed the crowd with “Who Am I (What’s My Name)?” He’s the OG.
At the end, there were blow up Raw joint floaties being thrown around in the crowd. Amazing. Literally comedy. Throughout their set, they brought out Ty Dolla $ign (you know they had to play “Blase”) and Juicy J. It’s lit.
Not gonna lie, me and my girl were a little worried because at another show on the tour, a railing fail which ended up injuring more than 40 people. HOW? Couple dates after that, at another show, 35 fans were treated for alcohol poisoning. Smh. This is concerning.
But we were Gucci. It was a solid night, and worth the trip. Oh, getting stuck exiting the venue after was fun. Thanks, Verizon Amphitheatre for taking us hostage. It was worth it.
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Wiz Khalifa poster on sale for $10.
I saw this poster on our way out after the show. Wanted it, found out it was 10 dollars, cash only. Hey, merchandise tents, when will you guys realize how clutch Venmo is?
The Body Los Angeles on 6015 Santa Monica Blvd #201, Hollywood, CA.
Friday, August 26
This night was spontaneous and ended up being a blast. Shout out to my girl Evan with Purple Agency for inviting me out to 12 Rounds with the Cast of Ringside. It was a boxing class/mixer at The Body in Hollywood, CA. Special shout out to Jenn Glysson who owns this dope gym. If you guys need personal training, hit up @bodybyjennla.
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12 Rounds with the Cast of Ringside.
This event was to promote the TV One movie Ringside that’s coming out. We actually tried to go to the screening on Tuesday, but it was full. Good for them. So this event was making up for that fail. I wanted a hard workout, and told Jenn to kick my ass.
The cast of Ringside.
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What we thought was going to be a group of basics like us in attendance, turned out to be the exact opposite. Yup, we were with the cast of the movie. Confirmed about 10 minutes in. What’s hilarious is this poster that had a picture of the cast on it. One played a boxer in the movie, so, fit-wise, we were already way behind. Luckily, the class wasn’t too hard.
What was really hard was the last exercise with huge tight ropes, about 15 feet long. There were two ropes you had to pick up with each arm, that came to a knot at the end. You had to lift them and create waves with your upper body… my weakness. My upper body strength is probably equivalent to a 5-year-old child. Smh. I could barely get the ropes in the air. My girl KILLED it, though. Seriously, she was so strong. Trophies.
We were so out of it after. We needed to unwind so we decided to catch Mechanic: Resurrection at The Grove after. Shout out to Jessica Alba, she’s bae. If you want some mindless action, definitely check this film out.
FYF statue as you walk into the festival.
Saturday, August 27
The long awaited FYF Fest. It’s finally here. I like to call it “Fuck Yo Friends” Fest because I think I’m funny, but it’s actually “Fuck Yeah Fest.” I went last year and had a great time, but that was the year Frank Ocean played hookie and broke everybody’s hearts. Standard.
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PS, can we talk about how long I had to wait to get a picture of this statue by itself? There was a LINE to take pictures in front of it. And it was long. I screamed “Can you move?” in between people’s turns to get a solo shot. I know, I’m reckless.
Balloons hanging above as you enter FYF Fest, pointing to the different stages.
The set-up this year was pretty cute. Look at these balloons they put up as you walk in. Also, since I had credentials, I was granted a VIP pass and got to skip the line coming in. Apparently, the GA line was a mad house. People were waiting for hours.
Kamaiyah performing on The Club stage at FYF Fest.
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My goal for the day was to see Kamaiyah and Kendrick Lamar, who wasn’t on until 11:15 p.m. I wasn’t expecting the headlining act to come on so late. Sigh. I’m old now. And as much as I didn’t want to stay, I knew I had to. It’s only right. Kamaiyah’s set was at 6:30 p.m., which is pretty much when I arrived. The festival was a mission to actually get into, so if you’re planning on seeing an artist at a certain time, definitely leave an hour to get there.
I literally ran to her set, and got there right on time. #TYBG. If you guys aren’t familiar, Kamaiyah is a female MC from the Bay. Her breakthrough into the scene was definitely hopping on YG and Drake’s “Why You Always Hatin?” You can’t lose with a collab like that. You just can’t. She’s sitting pretty in that music video too.
But I hope people realize she’s popping beyond that joint. Cop her mixtape A Good Night In The Ghetto. Some of you may think she sounds like a man, and it’s okay. I did too. Listen to “Out The Bottle” if you need a track.
I was done after her set, in terms of who I wanted to see. I was with my girl, whom I absolutely adore. She had the vape pen on deck, which was unbelievably clutch. They’re seriously perfect for festival settings, and shows in general. You just buy cannabis oil cartridges to refill once you run out. They’re flavored too. Mmmm.
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Malibu Rum House, equipped with temporary tattoos and sunscreen.
We caught a ton of acts in between, including Grimes, Air, and Tame Impala. I loved being exposed to new artists and new music in general. We went to the Malibu Rum House, which is towards the back of the beer garden by the main stage. This was a great meeting point if you needed one. I got to see my old friend who I haven’t seen in a minute, and all of a sudden our group increased from 3 to about 10.
Being easily amused, we found our way to the table giving out free temporary tattoos and sunscreen. Yes. Free gifts. The way to my heart. I decided to get a gold flash tattoo on my upper thigh, and all of a sudden I felt like another basic festival go-er. Smh.
Our group of 10 slowly trickled, as you may know, it’s not the easiest to move across festival grounds with a big group of people. I want to take a moment to acknowledge how amazing Tame Impala’s set was. Like wow. Speechless. Everyone was there for them at FYF. It was a good break from my typical Hip Hop only mantra.
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They’re an indie band from Australia. I would call them trippy rock. I’ve seen them before, but actually staying for the entire set was a game changer. And with die-hard fans in my group, I became a believer. The visuals were insane. Oh, Lady Gaga graced the stage at the end. A lot of people were wondering who the female was that showed up out of nowhere. Now you know.
Free Luden’s drops to lubricate your throat.
We had an hour to kill before Kendrick Lamar’s set, so we went to check out Hot Chip, an indietronica band. Super fun, dancey, feel-good music. On the way, we stopped by a tent giving out these throat drops. I was lit, and inhaled an entire box with 20 drops. I was actually concerned because these had active ingredients. Definitely not candy.
They were so bomb. Watermelon and strawberry banana flavors. Thank you, Luden’s. Excellent promoting. They were also giving out Crispy M&M’s at the entrance of the festival. Those are life.
Kendrick Lamar headlining FYF Fest.
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And we made it. The home stretch. Kendrick Lamar headlining the main stage. Honestly, sometimes I get stuck in my own little bubble of Hip Hop, I don’t even notice when rappers go mainstream. And Kendrick has definitely reached that level of success. In a sense, congrats. In another sense, I don’t like it.
PS, being short at a festival is the worst. We even came early to snag a good spot and it was already dumb crowded. He opened the set with his “Levitate” track (one of those unnamed tracks) off his untitled album. The crowd ate it up. He proceeded to play all his hits, including “Swimming Pools,” “Collard Greens,” “Bitch Don’t Kill My Vibe.” Classics.
The pivotal moment here is when K Dot brought out Isaiah Rashad. I nearly lost it. After three seconds of fangirling, I noticed the reaction in the majority of the crowd: absolutely nothing. No one knew who he was! Smh. He played “Free Lunch,” which had me screaming “meal ticket ticket ticket meal ticket ticket ticket” solo dolo.
I found out later that night that TDE retweeted me. That was dope. PS, Isaiah Rashad is my favorite TDE member. He reminds me that Hip Hop isn’t dead.
Balloons walking into FYF Fest… evening edition.
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Day two let’s go. These are how the balloons look after dark. I literally pulled up into a parking garage at USC around 8:55 after going around in a million circles. A cop car actually pulled me over for running a stop sign. I apologized profusely and said I was lost af. Almost cried. He was mad at first but then let me park in the garage for free. Trophies.
Agenda for the night: Young Thug at 10pm and Rae Sremmurd at 11:15pm. My decision to drive was instantly regretted after I realized how far I was from the entrance of the festival. I didn’t get in until like 9:40pm. I highly considered Ubering back after it was over, but knew that wasn’t going to happen. I hurriedly met my girl at Beach House over at the Trees stage and stayed for a song.
I made my other girl promise she would watch Thugger with me, and I accidently left too late so my ass RAN to the other side of the venue to the Lawn stage. Not all the way, I got tired after a solid 25 feet. Another dude was running in the other direction and cheered me on. Dedication guys. Dedication.
Young Thug performing at FYF Fest at 10pm.
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Shout out to my girl for providing backwoods, well her man gets credit. Backwoods man. It’s a different type of lit. They held down a dope spot right to the left of the stage. When he graced the stage, I was a little disappointed. I wanted him to be wearing something crazy, like his No, My Name Is Jeffery cover art. The memes that came from this were priceless.
Last time I saw him in Hollywood at The Fonda Theater, he was rocking a Prince suit. This was a much different setting. His set kind of made me laugh. I was definitely hyped to be there, but it seemed like it just wasn’t as popping as it should be. I guess FYF Fest isn’t Hip Hop heavy, so he’s got a different audience.
He played my favorites, though. “Pull Up On A Kid” and “Thief In The Night” are definite stand outs on Slime Season 2. He played music from all his projects, including… No, My Name Is Jeffery. Surprisingly, everyone was still calling him Thugger. There was one time he stated, “If you a Young Thug fan, say Jeffery.” But he never asked the crowd to ADDRESS him as Jeffery. Interesting.
Young Thug lying on the floor during his set.
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He lost people halfway through his set. Either that, or some other artist they came to see took priority. I was a little underwhelmed, but I was lit. He just looked tired. Like he needed breathers. At one point, he literally laid down on the floor on stage. You okay bro?
“Check” is also the anthem. There’s no way you can listen to that and not get hyped. It’s perfect for payday. Or winning the lottery. He also hyped up the crowd so much, as if he was going to bring out Gucci Mane. I swear. It was like he would get us all excited screaming “Welcome home Gucci,” only to be left with no Guwop. He dropped “Again” right after. A masterpiece by the two ATL artists.
At one point, he threw it back and asked for his day one fans, proceeding to play “Stoner” and “Lifestyle.” “Lifestyle” speaks to my heart. One of those tracks that bring me back to that place and time with that one special homie. I had to say homie so you guys didn’t think it was a boy I liked or something. I treasure the songs that my friends and I bond over.
He closed out with “Best Friend,” always a gem. Young Thug is my spirit animal.
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Usher playing Sugar Ray Leonard in Hands Of Stone.
So I just saw Hands Of Stone, which stars Usher playing boxing legend Sugar Ray Leonard and Robert De Niro as his trainer. I must say, I really enjoyed it. Even Jay Z and Beyonce attended the movie premiere in New York. That’s when you know it’s popping.
PS, the entire time, I really wanted Usher to bust out and sing “Confessions.” No joke.
