Jadakiss performs for the crowd, with lights and special effects helping emerge Jaspers in his set. BARBARA VASQUEZ / THE QUADRANGLE
Barbara Vasquez & Leyla J. Mercado, Editor-in-Chief & Features Editor / Asst. Social Media Editor
This past Saturday April 18, Manhattan University (MU) welcomed rapper Jadakiss to campus as this year’s Springfest performer.
Jadakiss, or Jason Terrance Phillips, is a Yonkers-native rapper most known for his work from the 1990s and 2000s.When Phillips took to stage in Draddy Gymnasium, he performed these classic songs such as “By Your Side”, “U Make Me Wanna”, “New York” and “Put Your Hands Up.” Attendees of the concert sang along, with strobe lights, sparklers and smoke machines creating a true concert-like atmosphere, all at MU.
The Quadrangle spoke to Phillips after his performance, and asked him about what it was like to come to a college campus, such as MU, and perform for a student crowd.
“Actually, a college crowd is one of the best crowds to see if you’re still lit,” Phillips said. “If you could rock a college crowd, then you know your career has legs, because those are the most vibrant people in the world. They’re going through exams, they’re dealing with all of this stuff, and then if they [colleges] book you, and the college kids come out and rock with you, then you know you’re in a good space.”
Yonkers, just minutes away from Riverdale, is where Phillips was born and currently resides. He takes pride in his hometown and stays active within the community – when The Quadrangle asked Phillips how it felt to come to a school so close to his home, he shared that the experience was especially meaningful.
“[This performance was] very meaningful, I’m always in the area and I know a couple of alumni, players, coaches,” Phillips said. “When I got the call to come here, it’s like, it’s in my backyard. It’s a no-brainer for me to come and be a part of any Jasper experience, because it feels like home for me.”
Students in the audience also felt the same sort of nostalgia. Enjoying Phillips’ performance led them to become even more aware of such,
Layla Luciano, a senior majoring in psychology with a minor in education, spoke to how experiencing the performance led her to be more present in the joy she shared with her friends that night.
“It hit me, I had a great time for my last year at Springfest.” Luciano said. “I really enjoyed myself with my roommates, and we danced a night away. We were able to bring in so many random people, meet new faces and make a community out of it.”
Moments like these are what truly made today so special. For Raya Caamano, junior criminology and psychology major, Philips’ performance was a cool experience both for herself and her family.
“I thought the performance was great,” Caamano said. “I think that Jadakiss is really good in the generation above ours. Even just being able to tell my mom that Jadakiss was coming to perform was such a huge deal for her – I even FaceTimed her in the crowd. A bucket list item, I would say.”
JadaKiss even went on to share insight, as someone who’s had a major impact on the industry for the past few decades, and the impact he plans to leave with students before him who may be interested in following his path to the music industry.
“Just that is possible,” Phillips said. “Don’t get discouraged, because it’s a very discouraging business, but if you perfect your craft and learn your business and learn your ins and outs of what you want to get into, it is a very capable business. And not as hard as some of the other things you might want to venture off into. Music is something, if your heart’s telling you want to do music, keep working at it, you’ll be successful.”