Kicking off the excitement of Welcome Week Sunday, the Campus Events Commission and Cultural Affairs Commission will host Bruin Bash featuring performances by groups Clipse and LMFAO.
This year, the concert and dance will be held in Pauley Pavilion followed by a free sneak movie screening of “Law Abiding Citizen” in Ackerman Grand Ballroom. Campus Events Commissioner and fourth-year history and art history student Joanne Lin coplanned the event with Cultural Affairs commissioner and fourth-year history and Asian American studies student Abigail Faelnar.
“In the end, Clipse and LMFAO fell within our price range, and we thought that they would do well and that the student body would respond well to their performance,” Lin said.
Clipse not only fell within the budget, but was chosen for its respectability among students as a relatively well-known hip-hop duo.
LMFAO, a top-40 act and electro-hop group that has risen in popularity with its single, “I’m in Miami, Trick,” was also chosen for its potential to appeal to a college crowd.
Members of the hip-hop duo Clipse, composed of brothers Gene and Terrence Thornton, or “Malice” and “Pusha T,” respectively, recently produced their forthcoming album, “Till the Casket Drops.”
“We make these albums off of moods: We have “˜Lord Willin’ and that whole scenario, then we have “˜Hell Hath No Fury,’ where we were in a deep-rooted anger with the record label, so that’s why that album is so cold and linear and dark,” Pusha T said. “I think when it comes to “˜Till the Casket Drops,’ we’re back to that “˜Lord Willin,’ type of space ““ more energy, more everything. We like to call it hip-hop on steroids because it’s so energetic,” Pusha T added.
Although the group members consider their prior album much more menacing in tone, the album received critical acclaim regardless. According to Malice, Clipse’s music generates from a distinct situation every time.
“Everything that we do is based off of our life, things that we go through, … and I think that calls for the best creativity, is pulling it from a real genuine place,” Malice said. “I think that’s why our fans stick with us, because you can pretty much count on our music. Like you hear our music and you have to say to yourself, “˜Oh yeah, they’ve been through that.'”
Malice spoke candidly about his opinion on the direction hop-hop is taking and on the artists who appear to be merely trying to sell records.
“I’m going to be honest; if an artist isn’t living like he’s talking about, that doesn’t matter to me, that doesn’t bother me. If you’re pulling it off, then I can enjoy it as entertainment, because after all that’s what this is. It’s entertainment,” Malice said. “I think when you listen to a Clipse record, it’s just an added plus that you get reality with this; I don’t hold anyone accountable for not being who they say they are.”
Clipse members explained that the Bruin Bash concert is a way for them to give back to their fans who have gone out of their way to seek records, despite their lack of airplay or video play.
“That is our playground. That is what we love. Our fans, along with the streets, have been the hipsters and the college kids. I think our music is a kind of thinking music; it’s not dumb ““ it’s articulate hip-hop,” Malice said.
“So, this is our time to really give back to those people who kept us alive, so when we come to your college and come to get down, it’s real intimate, it’s a lot of energy and a lot of passion,” Malice added.
Aside from setting the tone for Welcome Week and the upcoming year, the Bruin Bash concert was established as an alternative to attending parties in Westwood Village.
Faelnar said the event was meant to encourage incoming and returning UCLA students to attend Bruin Bash instead of the traditional “Black Sunday” parties during Zero Week.
“Bruin Bash was a way to provide a safe environment on campus for students to have fun and be entertained,” Faemar said.
“So, that’s really why we run the event from a concert to a midnight movie ““ just pretty much to provide entertainment all night,” Faemar added.
“There have been welcome concerts in the past, but this is a way to have the first kickoff of the year and really set the tone of getting people excited and pumped for the year ahead. And I think that’s the second major role: It gets everyone excited for the school year,” Faemar said.