Hip-hop artist Waka Flocka Flame performed some of his biggest hits during Thursday night’s Homecoming concert. ORACLE PHOTO/ZAHIR NELSON
Atlanta-based rapper Waka Flocka Flame transformed Parking Lot 35, which straddles the corner of USF Genshaft Drive and USF Holly Drive, into a party Thursday night.
The 39-year-old rapper delivered a 45-minute setlist from across his discography — including breakout singles “Oh Let’s Do It” and “Round of Applause” — during USF’s Homecoming concert.
The event was free for USF students, who could bring one guest. The concert happened at the same lot as USF’s Carni-Bull, which started at 5 p.m. and featured a Ferris wheel and a “Firestorm” swing.
The lot had a capacity of 5,000 people, according to Waka Flocka’s performance contract.
Waka Flocka — dressed in a baggy white T-shirt and dark green shorts — opened the Homecoming concert at 9 p.m. with the trap anthem “Grove St. Party.”
“Somebody go to the bar and get me like 20 lemon drops,” Waka Flocka joked after the song.
The contract between USF and Waka Flocka’s management showed the rapper requested multiple types of alcoholic beverages, which were denied due to the university’s alcohol policy.
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Waka Flocka was born in 1986 as Juaquin James Malphurs in Queens, New York.
He released his debut album, “Flockaveli,” in 2010, which reached number six on the Billboard Top 200 during its first week, according to Billboard data.
Waka Flocka showcased his crowdwork throughout the show at USF, even hopping over the stage’s front barricade to join the crowd as he performed his 2010 hit single “Hard in da Paint” a few songs into his setlist.
He stayed in the crowd for about 15 minutes and took selfies with fans in the crowd while the DJ played a medley of other artists’ hip-hop songs.
Once he was back on stage, Waka Flocka picked three female students to join him on stage, breaking into a rendition of Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance With Somebody.”
The show concluded with Waka Flocka’s club staple and highest charting Billboard hit, “No Hands,” before departing the stage for the final time around 9:50 p.m.
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USF has a history of inviting hip-hop artists to perform at Homecoming, including 2Chainz in 2022, Gunna in 2019 and Rae Sremmurd in 2018.
This year’s performance marked the first USF Homecoming concert in two years, as last year’s concert was replaced with a Round Up Comedy Show due to low attendance and budget cuts.
Waka Flocka received $45,000 for his performance on Thursday — $30,000 less than Puerto Rican rapper Lunay received during his 2023 Homecoming concert performance, according to documents between the university and Waka Flocka’s management.