Thrift shops in New Haven will be sold out before this year’s Spring Fling.
News that Macklemore would perform at Spring Fling broke after an agent from the artist’s booking company, the Agency Group, told the News Saturday night that the Seattle-based rapper would perform at Yale this spring. The Yale College Council, which organizes the annual concert, confirmed on its Facebook page and in an email from the Spring Fling Committee Sunday that Macklemore and his producer Ryan Lewis will appear in the April 29 Spring Fling lineup.
All students interviewed said they are excited to hear Macklemore’s recent hits — including his current No. 1 iTunes song “Thrift Shop” — and several students said they are impressed the Spring Fling Committee was able to secure the group.
“I think it’s awesome — what’s particularly cool is that while the acts for Spring Fling are always awesome, the fact that we have someone very recent, who had this amazing song that everyone loves,” Danielle Ellison ’15 said. “I think people get really excited about someone who has a Top Ten right now.”
In its Sunday email to all Yale College students, the Spring Fling Committee said that it is “psyched” to bring the popular artist to Yale. The committee’s email also included a survey in which students could help select the other acts to “complete the lineup.”
YCC Events Director Bryan Epps ’14 and Spring Fling Committee Chair Ethan Karetsky ’14 could not be reached for comment. YCC President John Gonzalez declined to comment on Macklemore’s performance Saturday night .
Macklemore released his first full-length album in 2005 and his hit single “Thrift Shop,” with Ryan Lewis featuring Wanz, on Oct. 8, 2012. “Thrift Shop” climbed to No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and sold over 2 million copies in total. The song appeared on hisfirst studio album “The Heist,” which reached the No. 1 position on the U.S. iTunes Albums chart within hours of release.
The rapper recently visited New Haven to perform at Toad’s Place on Nov. 18, 2012. Several students interviewed said they are excited that Macklemore will return to New Haven because the Toad’s performance occurred on the same weekend as this year’s Harvard-Yale football game, causing many students to miss the performance.
All 21 students interviewed said they are happy with the committee’s choice for Spring Fling.
“It’s so exciting to be closing off the year with such a strong Spring Fling.” Andre Shomorony ’13 said. “It will be an awesome graduation gift for me and my fellow senior class.”
Nine students said they are specifically looking forward to hearing “Thrift Shop” and “And We Danced,” another of Macklemore’s hit songs. Four students said they hope Macklemore also plays some of his less well-known songs.
“My favorite songs by him are ‘Starting Over,’ ‘Wings,’ ‘Otherside,’ ‘Hold Your Head Up,’ ‘Remember High School,’ ‘Same Love’ and ‘Make that Money,’” Lincoln Mitchell ’15 said. “These songs are more sentimental, and I really hope Macklemore includes them in his lineup.”
The announcement of Macklemore’s performance follows an October 2012 meeting between the Spring Fling Committee and the Women’s Center in which students discussed sex and gender sensitivity issues surrounding Spring Fling artists and brainstormed ways the committee could choose performers that would not make any students uncomfortable. The Women’s Center Public Relations Coordinator Suzanna Fritzberg ’14 said she is pleased that the Committee took questions about an artist’s ethics and respect for diversity seriously during the selection process.
“I think they’ve made a great choice,” Fritzberg said. “Macklemore has demonstrated commitment to improving dialogue around diversity issues, has a progressive ethos, and, most importantly, puts on a great show.”
Rapper T-Pain was the headliner at last year’s Spring Fling.