Flo Rida brought the energy to Stonehill

By Annie Renz

Stonehill students welcomed Flo Rida to ‘their house’ on Sunday for a night of energy, dancing, and countless throwbacks.

About two thousand students and faculty crowded around an elevated stage adorned with strobe lights inside the Sports Complex. Brother Mikes brought a tent for the 21-and-over crowd to gather behind eager fans.

The night began with Stonehill alum and KISS 108 DJ Mikey V. His hour-long set paired current pop hits with traditional club music to get students energized for the night.

“He had a lot of energy, and he got the crowd going,” said freshman Maddie Oglesby, “I think he set a great tone for Flo Rida.”

“I think it was cool that he is from Stonehill, but I feel like a DJ at an event like that is hard to keep the audience entertained. In terms of his actual songs, I thought he was good,” said junior Kira Pomrinke.

After Mikey V exited the stage, students’ anticipation for Flo Rida vibrated throughout Spoco.

After about twenty minutes of building excitement for Stonehill’s biggest Spring artist to perform on campus, some students say they were surprised by what happened next.

Oya Baby, Flo Rida’s former backup dancer turned artist, ramped up the crowd’s energy in seconds with her booming vocals and club-style dance moves.

“I think everyone’s jaws were on the floor. Definitely wasn’t expecting all of that,” said junior Lindsey Brown.

“I thought the volume that was in Spoco at that moment was inaudible. I couldn’t hear what she was singing,” said junior Frankie Melendez. “But, when Flo Rida came out, the video and sound crew definitely made some major adjustments.”

When Flo Rida finally took the stage, he reminded the crowd of how many hits he brought to the 2010s.

From his mega-hit “Low” to the crowd favorite “Club Can’t Handle Me,” Flo Rida kept fans entertained from start to finish.

“I like how he incorporated Stonehill in some way before each of his songs,” said junior Katie Farr. “Like, before ‘I Don’t Like It, I Love It’ he said, ‘I don’t like Stonehill, I love it!’”

Not only did he bring Stonehill into his set before introducing songs, but Flo Rida also brought students on stage for a few of his songs.

On stage, students danced alongside Rida and his backup dancers. Some even traded the microphone back and forth with the singer.

Some of the women’s ice hockey players got on stage and gave the singer a shirt they made for him. After putting on the shirt for the remainder of the song, Rida signed it and threw it back into the crowd.

That was one of the many souvenirs some students took home with them that night. Rida also tossed his shoes, shirt, and fake dollar bills into the crowd.

It’s safe to say this will be a night students won’t forget.

“The fact that Stonehill got that big of an artist here was awesome,” said junior Lily Newell. “He brought the Stonehill community together, and the night made little Lily so happy!”