This Year’s “Big Show” was nothing short of controversial. When the lead artist was announced at SEC’s Battle of the Bands, YikYak exploded with a myriad of posts from students expressing disappointment with the choice of singer. KYLE is an artist best known for his songs “iSpy,” “Hey Julie!,” and “Don’t Wanna Fall in Love.” When I first heard the announcement, I’ll be honest when I say that I didn’t know who he was either. After listening to his discography, I recognized his songs from both Music.ally and TikTok, and had (trauma) flashbacks of the incriminating videos of me doing the “Hey Julie!” dance. A few weeks later, Issac Dunbar was announced as the opener, and YikYak was once again flooded with dismay. Dunbar is a pop singer best known for his 2021 song “fan behavior.” This negative feedback made me question whether or not I should attend the show, but since I’m a freshman, and “Big Show” is a Skidmore right-of-passage, I decided to go, and it turned out to be better than I expected.
The night began with a rough start for my friends and I. Having not read over the rules and guidelines from the SEC before going (do not take me as an example), we showed up with bags that were too large, and we had to return to our dorms. When we returned, we were able to squeeze into the second row (my NYC subway experience came in clutch here), and waited for the first act to come on. The winners of the Battle of the Bands, Poplolly, were the first act, and they did a great job at hyping up the crowd before the main acts performed.
 Issac Dunbar came on second and immediately drew in the crowd. Dancing around the stage and asking questions to the crowd, he was endearing and relatable in a way that few artists can be. Despite not knowing any of his music, my friends and I found ourselves dancing and singing along to songs like “I Love to Dance” and “makeup drawer.” Dunbar concluded the show, and the crowd waited for the main act, KYLE, to come on stage.Â
KYLE took over 20 minutes to come on, and while a DJ played in his absence, the crowd was frustrated. After a few more “KYLE” chants, he ran on the stage with an abundance of energy (despite him telling us that he was ill). The energy was palpable, and KYLE did a great job of hyping up the audience and making them a part of his performance. From asking us to turn on our flashlights, to filming with the crowd’s phones, to signing a hat (with a phrase I’m not sure I can put on here but Iykyk), to putting our arms up, to singing parts of his music, or to jump around, we felt like we were as much of a part of the act as he was. My personal favorite part was screaming “he looked at me!” with my friends like we were One Direction fangirls in 2012. Overall, KYLE and his two backup dancers put on an entertaining and interactive show that may or may not have turned me into a fan of his…
All in all, this was a great first “Big Show” experience, and I’m super happy that I decided to attend. While it started off with disappointment, KYLE and Issac Dunbar changed the minds of many of us in the audience.