Rapper Lupe Fiasco and dance punk duo Matt & Kim will perform at Welsh-Ryan Arena on Nov. 4, A&O Productions confirmed Monday.
A&O Director of Concerts Allison Zuzelo said the addition of Matt & Kim to the lineup was the result of attempts to diversify the Fall Blowout performance, which has traditionally featured rap or hip-hop artists.
“Last year for Blowout, especially with Snoop Dogg and Kid Cudi, we felt like it was very one-note,” the Weinberg senior said. “While the show was a huge success, we wanted to make sure we changed it up this year.”
While news of the Nov. 4 performance first broke in August, when Lupe Fiasco’s tour schedule was released with an Evanston date, A&O declined to comment on the identity of the event’s performers prior to Monday. The Evanston tour date was removed from Lupe Fiasco’s schedule after the Daily published the news.
Dean of Students Burgwell Howard told The Daily in an email Monday that the University had confirmed the artists’ contracts “weeks ago,” and that he was unaware of the details of A&O’s plans to announce the performers. Zuzelo said it was planning and advertising, not administrative hesitation, that kept organizers from addressing rumors.
“I know people are excited and anxious and really want to know, and it’s not like we’re keeping it from them,” Zuzelo said. “We want to tell everyone as soon as we can, but there are just a lot of things that we have to go through to make sure that everything is in place.”
Chicago native Lupe Fiasco last performed at Northwestern in May 2007 for a Dillo Day show, though he returned to campus in November 2009 to promote “The People Speak,” a History Channel documentary about activism.
“I hear that his live performance has just stepped up exponentially from the last time he was here,” Zuzelo said. “He’s just a bigger name and he’s got a really great personality that we think that campus will really welcome and enjoy.”
Matt & Kim, a Brooklyn-based duo, have performed together since 2005. This is their first performance at NU, but Zuzelo said A&O hopes both performers will appeal to concertgoers.
“They both engage the crowd really well; they both get people excited and amped up,” she said. “Matt and Kim are a group that you don’t necessarily have to have listened to their music to enjoy them. They’re very dancy, they’re very energetic, and their performances really reflect that.”
Vivek Sudarsan, co-director of promotions for A&O, added organizers hope the addition of a second genre will help them fill the nearly 5,000 seats on Welsh-Ryan.
“It really speaks to multiple people’s tastes in music, so we’re looking forward to having good sales,” the Weinberg senior said.
Tickets will go on sale for undergraduates this Friday at 10:30 a.m. and for graduate students, faculty and staff members Monday, both through the Norris Box Office website. Tickets will be $10 for undergraduates and $15 for graduates students, faculty and staff.
