Natalie King, freshman in pre-med, wasn't planning on attending Auburn Airwaves because of a test she needed to study for. After meeting lead singer Travis Clark of We The Kings at the airport, her plans changed.
King; Sarah Sutter, freshman in exploratory studies; and their plus one, Amanda Bowden, freshman in studio art, had their names placed on Clark's guest list for the University Program Council event.
The women, three of about 1,700 members of the glowing audience, were thrilled to be a part of the event.
Clark's plans were also unclear when he first decided to take the gig in Auburn, as his wife is nine months pregnant with their second child. Clark told The Plainsman he was grateful for everyone in Auburn and the love they showed him and his band.
"[The night] was crazy for me," Clark said. "I had to fly out and play the show praying that she wouldn't go into labor. I literally had a private jet bring me here and wait at the airstrip in the event that I got the call."
While his mind might have been with his wife, Clark's performance didn't reflect an absent mind, opening with the fan-favorite, "Check Yes Juliet." Clark's bushy blond locks flew from side-to-side as he demanded the crowd jump like plastic floppy-armed tube men.
Flashing his palm tree tattoos on his right bicep, he threw used guitar picks into the crowd of students as he sang covers of "The Story of Tonight" from "Hamilton" and "The Middle" by Jimmy Eat World.
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With every band-encouraged wave of the hands, fans created a cascade of lights from the UPC-provided LED wristbands.
Between songs, Clark asked the crowd whether he should refer to fans as the War Eagles or the Tigers. To which Auburn students responded with circling fists held high and the loudest screams of the night thus far. The battle cry ended to the entrance of Aubie strutting camo pants and dreadlocks that fell down his gray hoodie.
Courtney, pharmacy student, said she has "a special place in [her] heart for We The Kings," but she was fairly impressed with all of the performances.
The crowd, already somewhat warmed up, had the chance to first hit the pit with The Score, a group based out of Los Angeles. Their black and white logo cast shadows across the Auburn Arena seats and the red strobes lit the faces of those watching artists in skinny, black jeans with ripped out knees tramp around the stage, microphone cord flopping along.
"Take me down to paradise," sang Eddie Anthony, lead singer, as bright white streams of light bounced off his silver guitar. Anthony sang strategically, almost focusing on every word he sang and what it meant to him when it first hit paper.
The energy began to transfer to the shy crowd when Anthony welcomed four Auburn men on stage to sing Post Malone's hit single.
Michael Leonard, sophomore in chemical engineering; Fred Taylor, sophomore in computer science; Nigel Harper, sophomore in business, and Roderick Mingo, junior in supply chain management, took the stage with a crowd egging them on.
Taylor said The Score "grew on [him] real quick." The men were surprised at first to be welcomed on stage.
Scanning their phones every seven seconds for guidance with lyrics, the men bobbed with the bass and had their three minutes of fame with Anthony. Leonard took to the microphone at the last moment with a message to his "mystery girl" and said, "I love you, baby."
He handed the microphone over but not before he threw his hands up in the shape of a heart.
The Score and We The Kings kept the crowd looking forward as they gushed over who was to come: 2 Chainz. Rolling out in a suped-up, pink wheelchair, 2 Chainz stole the show, and the crowd reached a sound level previously unreached.
2 Chainz was released from the hospital in August after surgery on his broken leg. The injury and recovery did not hinder his performances, as he continues to travel the U.S. on his "Pretty Girls Like Trap Music" tour.
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"I'm the freshest motherf----- in a wheelchair you've ever seen," 2 Chainz said.
Nurse Cupid, the dancer wheeling him around the stage in his Gucci hat, plaid pajama pants and hoodie, pushed the parking lever toward the floor and danced around his chair as he spat lines that were consistently finished by the crowd of jumping fans.
"A lot of great albums came out this year, but mine was the baddest," 2 Chainz said. One leg in the air, 2 Chainz stuck up his pinky just as high and sang, "Jays on, pinky ring."
Ciara Thomas, pharmacy student, said she was thoroughly impressed with his ability to stay "hype" in a wheelchair.
"Even though he was in a wheelchair, it was amazing," Thomas said. "I feel like it would have been the same if he had been standing up."
Alongside 2 Chainz were his Trap Black Dancers and his Trap Choir, who opened his set with a soulful chorus that received sporadic, exuberant responses from the awed group of students just below.
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