Soundset 2016: Chicago takes the hip-hop fest by storm

  Guest Author Emily Ornberg is a music geek from Minnesota who loves making magazines and drawing pictures of Elvis Presley. You can find her moshing at hip-hop shows, writing about said hip-hop shows or eating peanut butter milkshakes at Margie's Candies. Read some of her reviews & profiles on local subcultures here. The ninth edition of Twin Cities hip-hop bonanza Soundset brought nearly 30,000 to the nationally renowned festival—not without repping a few choice Chicagoan emcees. Choosing between acts was a stressful decision to be had—as hard as it was to choose between the steak nachos and local, molten Sweet Martha's cookies. There was something for everybody, acts of all sizes, band members and even genders—a rarity in the past. A$AP Rocky, Future, Atmosphere, Common, The Roots, Danny Brown, Post Malone, Raury and Lizzo were among the larger acts. Chicago was represented through up-and-comer Noname Gypsy (a.k.a. Noname), seasoned sophomore Mick Jenkins and pioneering vet Common. Noname Gypsy hit the stage early on the bright and sunny day, bringing the crowd along a thankfully slow incline with her simplified take on Chicago slam hip-hop. Her understated efforts, flowing through her original tracks and familiar features, were entertainingly quirky and effortless. An energetic Mick Jenkins tore into his set donning a patriotic "F**K DONALD" t-shirt, shouting the refrain, "Drink more water!" from his acclaimed mixtape The Waters—which ended up being more literally applicable when the day went on with more dehydrated teens pulled out from the crowd on stretchers and chairs. Common earned some of the crowd's most enthusiastic reactions, especially when he dove into old favorites like "The Food." Both thoughtful and boisterous, he showed the fest how Chicago does it best.