By Ahriel Nari
When we were finally let inside, we walked into an awe-inspiring venue. With patio lights lining the ceiling, rows of couches were arced up around the performance area. The food and drinks available gave the entire experience that extra razzle dazzle.
The evening’s hosts, B.R.E The Icon and Odd Mojo, let us know that today was more than the 4th annual Inner Circle – it was O-Slice’s birthday! After an impressive open mic session featuring Just Keys and Nate Joël, O-Slice made her grand entrance. She floated down the stairs to the front of the room in an eye-catching, orange jumpsuit as “Hot in Herre” by Nelly played as her theme music. After a few words of welcome, the show began.
Up first was BasicTheBassist. He wowed the audience with songs including “Will You Still”, in which he demonstrated his lyrical agility and prowess on the bass guitar. Next, soul artist Cramer serenaded us all with her gentle, angelic voice. Sporting pink hair, Cramer was like our fairy godmother singing lullabies. Then, engineerproducerrapper Matt McGhee enraptured the audience along with FootsXColes as his live band. In between performing fan-favorites such as “Sneak Me In” and “LADY LUCK”, Matt announced that he’s dropping a new album next month – not to be confused with his EP Maybe that he released earlier this month. Next, Rocket Z took the stage. Her fierce attitude and powerful, yet unimposing, alto voice filled up the room and commanded everyone’s attention. Kassim began his set with a touching story about how he’s known O-Slice since he was 12 years old. He warmed the audience all the way up with a high-energy performance of “Kenny Powers”.
And then it was finally time for O-Slice.
“I need to feel y’all,” O-Slice began. “I need to feel y’all because I lost my contact jumping around during “Kenny Powers”. So, I can’t really see right now.” Visual impairment could not hold her back, though. She casually flexed the range of her talent – effortlessly going from turn up anthems to more thoughtful songs about the plight of Black people. We were even treated to unreleased music – a track that also features Kassim. O-Slice wrapped up the evening with “Two Hands”, a song that prompts you to appreciate your blessings. The overwhelming amount of love in that room was a beautiful experience. The event definitely lived up to its promise of “Talented artists. It’s just that simple.” The night left you planning in your head to be at the next Inner Circle. To see O-Slice’s growth as an artist up to this point made you excited for where she’s headed next. O-Slice is a Supernova and we were lucky to be in her stardust that night. Check out pictures from The Inner Circle 4 below:
