Young Florida rapper Denzel Curry — he turned 21 in February — is returning to WOW Hall as a headliner after his last stop in 2015 opening for Joey Bada$$ and Mick Jenkins.
The evolution to headliner in one year makes sense: Before releasing his debut album Nostalgic 64 in 2013, Curry appeared on BBC Radio and performed at Coachella. His hard-hitting track “Threatz” has a phenomenal, psychedelic music video that has racked up 6.5 million views.
Much like the last time Curry played WOW, this show features an opening act that you can’t miss. Get to the gig early to catch the Canadian-born rapper and producer Allan Kingdom, who grew up in the Minnesota’s Twin Cities, home to one of the biggest hip-hop scenes in the U.S. (Doomtree, Atmosphere, GRRRL PRTY).
Kingdom is perhaps best known for his feature on Kanye West’s “All Day” track (which also featured Paul McCartney) in 2015. Watch the performance with flamethrowers at the Brit Awards, which drew some timeless reactions from celebrities in the crowd like Lionel Richie and Taylor Swift.
While his feature on a West track certainly helped his career trajectory, Kingdom’s recent LP Northern Lights (2016) is one of the most complete, compelling releases of the year.
North Carolina’s JK The Reaper and Miami’s SDotBraddy join Denzel Curry and Allan Kingdom 9 pm Wednesday, March 30, at WOW Hall; $13 adv., $15 door.