On Monday, Gunna brought his “Bittersweet Tour” to Detroit — and nearly blew the roof off of the Fox Theatre.
This was as an enthusiastic crowd as the Fox as ever had. No one was seated during Gunna’s entire set, and video posted to the Atlanta rapper’s Instagram page shows the balcony level of the nearly 100-year-old venue shake as his fans jump along to his hit “Fukumean.”
The crowd at Gunna’s concert had the balcony shaking when he performed “F*kumean”. pic.twitter.com/qQTlOxwwCR
— XXL Magazine (@XXL) May 7, 2024
The incident recalled a 2022 Baby Keem show that saw the floor of Saint Andrew’s Hall bending under the weight of the crowd, resulting in the venue ending the show early and shutting the venue down for nearly three months to make structural reinforcements.
When asked by Metro Times for comment, the Fox Theatre’s parent company said there’s nothing to be worried about.
“The type of movement seen at the recent Fox Theatre concert is common and expected on free-standing balcony structures, to support audience members actively dancing, as shown during last night’s concert,” Ilitch Sports + Entertainment said. “This capability is an integral part of the balcony’s structural engineering design. Regular inspections, most recently conducted in April, are completed to ensure the integrity and safety of the structure.”
Otherwise, it was a great evening of hip-hop. The first act was Alabama native Flo Milli. This was her first performance since the 24-year-old rapper excited the stage mid-set during her show in Columbus, Ohio on Saturday after fans began throwing objects at her. With that incident shaken off, she was confident, vibrant, and charming. Her set was highlighted by her hit, “Never Lose Me.”
Headliner Gunna was up next. The College Park, Georgia-born emcee was dressed in furry boots, shorts, and a white long-sleeve shirt and worked his way from the back of the theater to the stage rapping his song “Bittersweet” under the glow of arctic blue lights. Three songs into his 90-minute set a white curtain was removed to display a titanic replica head of Gunna laying damaged on its side. It was something reminiscent of a scene from your favorite Greeks versus Romans movie, as Gunna reappeared with a sleeveless T-shirt and sparkling silver pants.
There were no features from other artists or surprise appearances by Detroit emcees for this night. It was all about the Gunna, who moved efficiently through his set and only taking a few opportunities to address the fans.
The biggest X factor of the “Bittersweet Tour” is that Gunna started it before the release of his fifth studio album One of Wu, which drops on May 10, whereas most tours start on the heels of an album release. This meant that fans were treated to unreleased music and also favorites from his albums A Gift & a Curse, DS4Ever, Wunna, and Drip or Drown 2.
This article was updated with a statement from Ilitch Sports + Entertainment. Lee DeVito contributed to this report.
