Canadian singer-songwriter K’naan performed to a crowd in the pouring rain Sept. 4, the third day of orientation week.
K’naan’s appeal as a performer extends beyond critical acclaim and international popularity, orientation co-ordinator Charlie Nielsen said.
“[K’naan] is a Canadian artist. We feel he represents diversity well,” Nielsen said.
K’naan slipped onto stage with no introduction or fanfare.
He explained to the crowd, with a hint of embarrassment, that his keyboard player, bassist, and male backup vocalist were stuck in an elevator.
While he performed his first song of the night with half the band missing, K’naan seemed to keep the crowd totally captivated despite the rain.
Embedded in each of K’naan’s catchy radio hits or impassioned hip hop tracks were depictions of emotional and physical struggle, personal growth, religion and politics.
These themes were seemingly out of place at an orientation event, or even the Top 40s, and yet K’naan’s honest and genuinely entertaining performance struck just the right chord.
K’naan performed several of his older hits like “Fatima,” “Take a Minute,” and “Bang Bang” as well as new songs off his upcoming album, Country, God, or the Girl. He performed “The Seed,” a song about personal growth, for an audience for the first time at Carleton’s orientation week.
Originally slated for release in May 2012, Country, God, or the Girl will be on sale Oct. 3 and reportedly features collaborations with Bono, Keith Richards, and Nas.
Predictably, the final song of the night was the iconic “Waving Flag,” the song that launched K’naan to international stardom after a re-vamped version was adopted as the 2010 FIFA World Cup theme song.
“Since you’ve been such a good audience I feel like I can sing this,” K’naan told the cheering audience.
It seemed as though he was reluctant to perform the song, as he had warned the crowd earlier requests for that particular song made him feel “like a jukebox”.
The energy the song created, even in a downpour, was palpable.
The crowd surged forward slightly, trying to get closer to the band.
For the first time that night, largely because of the rain, concert -goers brought out their cellphones to record that song.
Years after its release, “Waving Flag” remains a powerful song.
The opening act, Toronto-based DJ Kids & Explosions, did not experience the same level of audience connection.
The DJ’s combination of the Twin Peaks theme song and “N*ggas in Paris” did not pump up the crowd, who were already hyped on Red Bull and school spirit.
The audience periodically burst into chants or a chorale of vuvuzela blasts as the DJ performed.
But neither this setback, nor the consistently heavy rain could dampen the festivities.
For fall orientation participants like Noah Latchem, the concert was a memorable part of a quintessential university experience.
“I haven’t been to a good concert in a long time, so tonight was awesome. The whole week has been such a blast.”
