The Benjamin Franklin Parkway in front of the Philadelphia Art Museum was shut down on Saturday, Sept. 1 and Sunday, Sept. 2 for the Made in America Festival.
The man behind the vision for Made in America was rapper, songwriter, producer and entrepreneur, Shawn Corey Carter, more commonly known as Jay-Z.
The highly anticipated music festival, sponsored by Budweiser, brought together many diverse music tastes, performers and fans of all ages. The festival consisted of many different genres of music including indie rock, dub-step, electronica, rap, R&B, rock, etc.
Day one of the festival began with performer Gary Clark, Jr. Other day one performers included Mike Snow, Passion Pit, D’Angelo, Dirty Projectors, Janelle Monae, Prince Royce, Calvin Harris, Funkagenda, Michael Woods, Otto Knows and Savoy.
Maybach Music Group (Meek Mill, Rick Ross and Wale) gathered a large crowd mid-afternoon at Rocky, the main stage, in front of the well-known steps of the Philadelphia Art Museum where movie-character Rocky Balboa trained. They got the crowd moving, cheering and singing when they began performing “House Party.”
Skrillex excited fans, taking Liberty Stage at 8:30 p.m in a starship stage-piece. Even though day one was coming to an end, fans were still pumped and enthusiastic throughout Skrillex’s set. Hardcore ragers brought out their LED gloves and light sticks, entertaining nearby people with the tricks they could do. A few songs Skrillex performed included; “Cinema,”“Bangarang,” “Lights,” “Ruffneck,” “Breakn’ A Sweat” and many more.
At the end of Skrillex’s set, fans immediately proceeded to Rocky Stage. Jay-Z performed some fan-favorites and his biggest hits including: “99 Problems,” “Empire State of Mind,” “On To the Next One” and more. Day one concluded with a surprise appearance from Kanye West, a performance of The Throne’s “N***as in Paris” and fireworks.
“It was fantastic. The best concert I’ve been to,” Tabitha Maze, junior psychology major, said.
