Final 2019 Concert Review: Riff Raff

I decided to end the year with one more, completely random concert. Riff Raff! Had it not been local, there is no chance you would have caught me there, but I couldn’t resist. I feel like I’m a glutton for punishment.

Over the years, I seen my fair share of rap artists, like Snoop Dogg, Kanye West, and Wiz Khalifa, but those were all a part of a festival experience. Never before have I went to a rap concert on purpose, but I, like many others, really enjoyed Riff Raff’s ridiculous Vine clips, so I figured it would be well worth it. And really, it was something I may never forget.

My friends and I showed up a little late, but managed to catch one of the openers, name, who had a surprising fan base in attendance. A short while later, a side door near where I was standing opened and a pungent smell hit me in the face. The security guard excitedly said, “man this brings me back to high school and college!”…we had very different experiences apparently. Either way, from that cloud of nonsense came Riff Raff covered head to toe in neon and an array of prints.

He was joined on stage by a DJ/hype-man, Topanga Jack (who I’m pretty sure was wearing pajamas), and an immovable body-guard (I assume). Amidst the non-stop fog machine, Riff Raff and Topanga Jack hopped around on stage rapping over tracks that seemingly bleed into one another. While it was relatively hard to understand, the crowd was FEELING IT. Like a lot. I even saw a Riff Raff impersonator in the crowd. Good for you, guy.

Most of Riff Raff’s songs had a hard and catchy back-beat, but he did end his hour-long set with a new jam that seemed more EDM than the rest of his catalog. Having not been a fan, I honestly couldn’t tell you a single song that was performed, but he definitely knows how to work the crowd. That was enjoyable to watch. Aside from his outrageous outfit, he also had some spectacular merch. One shirt showed “Riff Raphael” and a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle, while another showed Riff Raff and labeled himself at the top, “Neon He-Man. I truly loved the creativity of them. He also had a purple F-150 parked out front of the venue. I expected nothing less.

Overall, I wouldn’t advise you go see Riff Raff unless he’s coming to your small town and you can swing the inexpensive ticket price. Thrills were to be had, but it’s not quite my scene.