Fresh off of what was probably the hottest year of his career, hip-hop artist Future will be kicking off his Purple Reign tour featuring R&B/hip-hop artist Ty Dolla $ign. The show is at 8 p.m. Feb. 17 at the iconic Orpheum Theatre on State Street. A small, intimate setting likt the Orpheum is a sure way to involve the audience. The sold-out show is the kick-off of Future’s first tour since his chart-topping year in 2015.
In 2015, the Atlanta rapper released four different projects. The release of his two mixtapes, 56 Nights and Beast Mode, in addition to the critically-acclaimed Dirty Sprite 2, skyrocketed him to the top tier of hip-hop. As if his solo endeavors weren’t enough, he and Drake released the extremely popular collaborative mixtape, What A Time To Be Alive.
Riding his recent wave of success, Future has already released two new projects in 2016. A mixtape with the same name of his tour, Purple Reign, and his album EVOL, which was just released on Feb. 5. Both contain tracks worthy of praise. Only time will tell if these projects will reach the same level of success as those released in 2015. However, the combination of two early projects and a national tour have put the rapper on a path towards another great year.
There is no doubt that his upcoming show is one of the most highly anticipated concerts in the Madison music scene right now. Future has proven that he’s the type of artist who can get a crowd going with his brash rhymes laid on top of hard-hitting beats, and having Ty Dolla $ign as his opener will take that excitement one step further. Following the release of his official debut album Free TC, Ty Dolla $ign is rising in popularity and has a great opportunity to prove to a new audience that his combination of singing and rapping is something worth listening to. Both artists have similar styles which will potentially give the show a solid sense of cohesion. It also turns out that the biggest hit from Free TC is a song that features Future, making it strong contender for Future’s initial appearance on stage.
Future’s setlist is almost guaranteed to be a compilation of some of the biggest club songs he has. Due to their extreme popularity, songs like “Where Ya At feat. Drake,” “March Madness,” “Stick Talk,” “Move That Dope feat. Pharrell Williams, Pusha T & Casino” and “F*ck Up Some Commas” are all clear contenders to make the cut. Tracks like “Jumpman” and “Big Rings” from his What A Time To Be Alive project are obvious choices as well. In addition to some of his popular hits, the release of his album a mere week and a half before his tour begins will likely affect his song selection; he’ll most likely want to promote his new songs, and there’s no better way than playing them live. Both projects have tracks that have the potential to become some of the artist’s most popular tracks. “Maybach” from EVOL and “Run Up” from Purple Reign are both classic Future tracks: great beats, booming bass, boasting lyrics and a hook that you can’t help but to sing along with. Despite being on a Wednesday, the sold-out show will definitely be the place to be.
