Philadelphia comes together to attend Made in America.
To many St. Joe’s students, the first weekend back to school only means one thing: Made in America.
Made in America is one of Philadelphia’s biggest music events, with 71 artists performing over the course of two days. This year, the festival was held on Sept. 1 and 2 on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway.
St. Joe’s students joined the throngs of concert-goers as they scanned their wristbands at the entrance. Five different stages lined the Benjamin Franklin Parkway where various performers went on at each hour. From 12 p.m. to around 11 p.m., a range of big-name and lesser known performers came together to celebrate America.
Among the many performers, some students were most looking forward to seeing the major headliners, such as Post Malone and Kendrick Lamar.
Michael Kovalchik ’20 attended Made in America last year with his friends. He attended the festival this year with the same group of students in anticipation of the exciting performances.
“Post Malone is definitely the headliner I’m most excited to see,” Kovalchik said.
Post Malone’s talent was evident with each note he sang. He played songs people expected to hear and Anna Damico ’20 said she could tell he played the setlist that he wanted. Post Malone performed popular songs like “Rockstar” and “Congratulations.” He took breaks in between songs to talk about his heartbreak, personal wins and losses and “doing whatever the hell you want.” He was genuine and humble with the crowd, whose energy reflected the performance.
While some attendees went for the festival’s atmosphere, others bought tickets to experience their favorite artists live. Damico attended for this reason, as she is a big fan of Post Malone.
“Me and my roommate, this past spring, we got so into Post with his new album being released, so that is why we were so excited and obviously because he was the headliner for the first day,” Damico said. “His songs would always just get us so hype, even the ballads would get us in our feelings. If we were getting ready for our formals, his faster songs would get us excited too.”
Other popular artists who made appearances included Meek Mill, Nicki Minaj and Zedd. The headliners were spread out between the two days, giving attendees the opportunity to see exciting performances on both Saturday and Sunday.
In addition to these major attractions, there were many up-and-coming artists for patrons to discover. Kendrick Lamar showcased his friend and Philadelphia native, Bri Steves. She put on an incredible performance, while Kendrick Lamar backed up her powerful vocals.
Other St. Joe’s students went to Made in America for the first time this year to be a part of the unique experience. As a Made in America first-timer, Damico was ready to see the various artists and rowdy crowds at an event that brought all types of Philadelphians together.
“Being in Philadelphia, there is such an amazing variety of people and they all just come together experiencing all these different types of music,” Damico said. “It’s unlike anything.”
A fan of west coast rap, Brenden Steigerwald ’21 was excited to check seeing Kendrick Lamar off his bucket list. Steigerwald created a bucket list of performers two years ago that he wants to see.
“My dad showed me NWA and Tupac, so I really love west coast rap,” Steigerwald said. “Kendrick Lamar is my version of that and it was really great to see him live.”
While Steigerwald went mainly to see Kendrick Lamar, he also appreciated other performances, such as Miguel.
“I didn’t know many of his songs, but it was still incredible,” Steigerwald said.
Steigerwald said it was more enjoyable to take everything in than plan out which performers his group wanted to see.
“We just went anywhere there was music, which I preferred,” Steigerwald said.
For Damico, as well as others, attending Made in America was a great way to witness both talented musicians and an exciting environment in the city.
“It was just such an amazing experience,” Damico said. “I’m not even into EDM music, either, but it’s just the crowd. There’s just an energy in the crowd that’s electric.”
