Yellow lights flashed and students cheered as rap artist 24kGoldn entered center stage singing his hit 2019 single “Valentino.”
UF Student Government Productions hosted its annual first day of class concert Thursday night at the Stephen O’Connell Center. 24kGoldn headlined the event alongside pop/rock band Hot Chelle Rae.
O’Connell staff declined to report an exact number of attendees, but previous first-day events had upwards of 2,000 attendees. SGP hosted rappers Don Toliver in 2023 and Joey Bada$$ in 2022, marking the first day of those Fall semesters.
The doors opened at 6 p.m., and the show kicked off at 7 p.m. with Hot Chelle Rae performing its 2011 hit song “Tonight Tonight” and “I Like It Like That.”
UF Freshman Chi Xu met 24kGoldn after the show. Despite not knowing either of the artists before the concert, Xu said the energy was contagious.
“He engaged the crowd with good songs,” Xu said. “He was a chill person. He signed my shirt, asked about my plans during and after college and wished me luck.”
Brock Burnett, also a UF freshman, listened to 24kGoldn on Spotify before the concert to familiarize himself with the music. 24kGoldn is best known for his songs that went viral on TikTok, including “Mood,” “Valentino” and “City of Angels.”
“I just listened to his No. 1 song on Spotify called ‘Mood,’” Burnett said. “It is pretty popular, so this is his chance to prove himself.”
UF freshmen twins Steven and Patrick Miller-Edwards attended the show together. They kept an open mind despite not knowing what to expect, they said.
“I looked him up on Spotify because I thought he sounded somewhat familiar,” Steven Miller-Edwards said. “Then I saw the song ‘City of Angels’ come across it and remembered listening to this back in my COVID-19 days. It was a throwback.”
Phoebe Davis, a UF freshman, said she only knew 24kGoldn’s songs “Valentino” and “Mood” and Hot Chelle Rae’s “Tonight Tonight.” She’s hoping to see more current artists from Student Government Productions in the future, she said.
“This is good for the first concert, but if it was Homecoming I’d feel a little different,” Davis said. “Other than that, I just want to be around other people and enjoy music.”
Sian Jose stood in the pit and said the artists “only played a few good songs”. But she ultimately feels that she had a good time. The front of the pit section carried the energy, the UF freshman added, while the excitement faded toward the back.
“There were like two okay songs and then one good song,” Jose said. “Starting with ‘Valentino’ was smart — I can’t lie.”
Contact Ella Dorfman at edorfman@alligator.org . Follow her on X @dorfman_ella.
